All Those Years Ago
by hpfan87
Summary: Neo is obsessed with watching a young girl in the Matrix. Who is this girl and what does she have to do with Trinity and Neo? Takes place after the war, Trinity and Neo are still alive .
1. Chapter 1

I tried to keep people as in character as possible, but I'm not perfect. I apologize if they aren't. Read and review please. I'm open to criticism, as long as its not too harsh!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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Trinity walked down the corridor of the Neb, her boots thumping heavily on the grated steel floor. She had woken up to find that Neo wasn't beside her for the third morning in a row. She was confused at his sudden change in behavior. They used to stay in bed for as long as they could, enjoying the little time they had alone together. 

Trinity spotted him sitting at the core yet again, mesmerized by something in the matrix code. Trinity still couldn't read it, at least not nearly as well as Neo could. He described it like reading a children's book, for Trinity it was more like a foreign language where she could only pick up bits and pieces of simple code.

"What are you looking at?" asked Trinity sitting down. She asked aloofly even though the question had been plaguing her for days.

Neo looked up when she sat down, but didn't answer her question. He sat, still staring the screen, a look of contemplation on his face.

"Okay then," Trinity continued in a somewhat aggravated tone. Why wasn't he talking to her? Had she done something to make him angry?

Trinity stayed put, replaying the questions over in her head and trying to work out the code displayed on the screens in front of her. It looked complex and she gave up soon, choosing instead to look at Neo. He looked so focused, yet so distant at the same time.

Trinity resolved that he was far too lost in his own world to pay her any attention and she opted to leave. She sighed in exasperation, and jumped down from the chair, turning to go get breakfast. Just as she got a few feet however, she heard Neo's voice from behind her.

"It's this girl. I don't know how I found her, but I just did. There's something about her," he said, his voice detached.

That's what all this was about, some girl? Trinity felt anger rising up inside of her. It wasn't enough that he had sacrificed their mornings together to look at a computer screen, but he was doing it just to watch some other woman? That Trinity could not handle. She made a noise in the back of her throat and stormed off to the kitchen.

When Trinity opened the door, with more force than was necessary, she caught sight of Morpheus eating breakfast at the table.

"Good morning Trinity," he said without looking up, despite her dramatic entrance.

"Morpheus," greeted Trinity, before grabbing a dish and filling it up with the nutritious sludge she had grown accustomed to. She sat down at the table opposite Morpheus and quickly began to shovel the food into her mouth. She was still angry and was trying hard not to take it out on Morpheus, making her eat with more fervor than usual. Morpheus noticed.

"Something wrong?" he asked, his tone unfaltering.

Trinity sighed and threw down her spoon with a loud clang, putting her hands to her temples.

"It's Neo," she said in a tired voice, "he's obsessed with watching some girl in the matrix. That's all he's been doing for the last three days."

Trinity thought she probably sounded jealous of some computer generated woman, and realized she was sort of.

"A girl?" asked Morpheus curiously, "who is she?"

"I'm not sure," replied Trinity, now feeling rather foolish.

Morpheus gave her a questioning look, then went back to eating his breakfast. He obviously wasn't too interested. He stood up and put his dish away before turning back to Trinity.

"You both need to focus on our mission. Meet me up at the front in fifteen minutes," he said, before promptly leaving the kitchen in that direction.

It had been almost fifteen years since Neo's final battle with Smith. Neo had managed to win the war and miraculously survive, however, so did the Matrix. He had returned to the ship to say his last goodbyes to Trinity, when he noticed she was still alive, but only barely. He had freed her from the rubble and rushed her back to Zion. They managed to keep her alive and she had made a full recovery. They both went back to work on the Neb with Morpheus and Link, helping to save the people who were still caught up in the matrix. There were just so many of them, it would definitely be a lifelong task, not just for them, but for many other crews in Zion. Still, Neo and Trinity were grateful to be alive, have each other, and be able to continue working with Morpheus and Link.

Trinity finished her breakfast quickly and threw the dish in the sink offhandedly. She was determined to get to the bottom of Neo's little obsession. She remembered what Morpheus had said, but that was why she needed to get Neo to talk to her, so he could refocus on the tasks at hand.

Trinity walked back into the core and wasn't surprised to see Neo still staring intently at the screen. She came up beside him once again and put a hand on his shoulder, grabbing his attention. He turned to face her and seemed oblivious to her frustration.

"Well?" asked Trinity after a few seconds of silence.

"Well what?" Neo asked innocently.

Trinity sighed again, she was getting more irritated by the minute. He could somehow do that to her in a way that no one else could. Mind you, he could do a lot of other things to her than no one else could, some of them absolutely wonderful. Trinity tried to contain her anger, hoping her appearance of calm disposition might lure him into answering her questions.

"Who is this woman you're obsessed with looking at?" asked Trinity, trying to keep her tone even.

Neo looked confused for a second then laughed out loud. Trinity was puzzled but also a bit infuriated by his reaction. This certainly was not a laughing matter in her opinion.

"Did you think I was attracted to another woman?" he asked coyly, mockingly, with a smart-ass tone that pissed Trinity off. She was relieved that he apparently was not interested in another woman. She chose to voice her feelings by saying nothing, but just looking at him annoyed, willing him to continue.

"Alright, alright," he said, his voice now returning to his usual self.

"I'm watching a girl, but she's only fourteen," said Neo in a serious voice, turning back to the screen.

"So, you like them young now?" asked Trinity in an icy, but joking voice.

Neo looked over his shoulder at her, an unamused expression on his face.

"Ha ha," he replied, an edge in his voice.

Trinity did laugh, feeling relieved that she was still the object of his affection. Neo smiled back at her and pointed to the screen.

"She's at school already," he said.

Trinity looked at the screen squinting her eyes slightly. She couldn't see much.

"So, why exactly are you watching her? It sounds a little creepy to be honest," said Trinity.

Neo shrugged.

"I don't know," he replied honestly, "I just think she's interesting."

"What do you know about her?" asked Trinity, a little interested herself.

"Not that much. She's in the ninth grade. She lives in New York." answered Neo matter of factly.

"How long have you been watching her?" asked Trinity.

"A couple days," he answered.

A voice disrupted their discussion as Link walked into the room.

"What are we looking at?" he asked, peering at the screen from behind Neo and Trinity.

Morpheus walked in just then, his voice stern, "Link, Trinity, let's go now. I want us to reach the surface as soon as possible."

Link and Trinity looked at each other before Link shrugged and said to Morpheus, "sure thing Captain."

Trinity turned to Neo and kissed him softly.

"I missed you this morning," she said, "do you think you could come to bed early tonight?"

Neo smiled, and said, "sure."

Trinity got up and left following Link. She looked over her shoulder to see Neo once again focus on the screen intently. Whoever this girl was, she sure had Neo's attention.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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Trinity sat down beside Morpheus, as he steered the Neb up the large pipes leading to the surface. She saw that they were only minutes away. They usually went to the surface at least once a week to check on how things were running. They had to make sure that people were still properly being taken care of since all the machines had died so many years ago. The people could not simply be woken up from the matrix, but had to first be unplugged using the tracing program. This meant a lot of time and effort for the crew. They had tried using other more effective methods, but they had all resulted in eventual, if not immediate, death. 

They reached an entrance, and flew through it, landing on the surface just beside it. The skies were still scotching, though they had calmed down through the years. There was still so much to be done before Zion could relocate to the surface, though plans were underway.

Link was at the computer, checking data and analyzing the air quality, humidity, temperature, ect.

"It all looks good Captain," he said, still working swiftly.

"Good," replied Morpheus, "we should go in now. Trinity, I want you and Neo to speak with our next target. We need to prep him for release."

"Alright," said Trinity, "I'll hook us up. Link, if you don't mind?"

Link nodded and followed Trinity back to the core. Neo was still staring at the screen when they came in, and abruptly turned when they entered, a curious look on his face.

"We're going in," said Trinity, motioning for Neo to get in a chair.

Neo said nothing, but walked over and jumped into the chair, waiting for Trinity to buckle him in. He smiled at her as she strapped him in, and she smiled back, never faltering in her movements. She had done this so many times.

Trinity then moved over to sit in the chair beside him, and lay back as Link strapped her in.

"Alright guys," said Link, walking back over to the computers, "where are we headed today?"

"To the complex," said Trinity, without hesitation.

"The complex…" said Link uncertainly, "Oh, of course! Alright, here we go."

The complex was an apartment building in New York. One of their new targets, a man named Sphinx, who was famously known for his computer skills, was due to be unplugged soon.

Trinity felt the familiar tugging in her head, as she sensed the Neb disappearing from around her to reveal a new world. She opened her eyes to a bright sunny day in New York. Neo was beside her now. They were behind an old building just down the road from the complex. Trinity looked around the dark dingy alleyway which was deserted. Her cell phone rang in her pocket and she whipped it out quickly, flipping down the receiver.

"We're in," she said automatically, "he is home right?"

"Yup, still in bed," replied Link.

"Alright, thanks," she said, before flipping down the phone and pocketing it.

"Let's go," said Trinity, speaking now to Neo.

They rounded the building and made their way down the busy street, the building just a hundred meters away. They no longer wore their trademark leather and trench coats, but more ordinary street wear.

They didn't have to worry about battling agents anymore, and so they had a little more casual approach, though still dressed well. Neo was wearing a sleek expensive looking black suit, and Trinity was wearing dark jeans and an elegant black jacket. They were stripped of their weapons, but still held a small handgun each just for precaution. It was New York after all. They both still fashioned the sunglasses, making them still appear very authoritative and rather intimidating.

When they reached the complex, Trinity rang the buzzer for Sphinx's apartment number and waited for a response. A minute later a voice clicked on.

"Yeah?" the voice asked, in a very suspicious tone.

"It's us, let us in," replied Trinity in a firm voice.

She and Neo had talked to Sphinx once before, when they had run into him at work.

"Who?" Sphinx asked.

"Look," said Trinity in a menacing tone, "you can either let us in now, or we'll break our way in, and we may not be so polite when we get to your door."

There were a few moments of silence before the buzzer rang loudly, indicating the door had been unlocked. Trinity smiled to herself, opening the door and walking in, holding it for Neo behind her. They walked through the small lobby and Trinity stood in front of the elevator doors while Neo pressed the button. The building was rather old and smelled of cheap carpet and moldy paint.

An elderly woman stepped out of the elevator when it opened and jumped back when she caught sight of Trinity and Neo. Trinity reasoned they must have looked very out of place in their classy outfits.

The woman eyed them warily before scooting past quickly, and looking back over her shoulder as Trinity and Neo entered the elevator side by side. The doors closed and Trinity pressed the button for the twelfth floor when Neo spoke.

"This guy Sphinx…" he said in a thoughtful voice, "I have a bad feeling about him."

"So do I," replied Trinity, "I thought it was just me though."

The elevator made a slow climb, creaking dangerously all the way.

"Why is he the next one?" asked Neo.

"He's a leading software engineer, and they think he'll be an asset in devising a system to free people more efficiently," replied Trinity, repeating almost word for word what Morpheus' explanation had been when she asked the same question.

"Ah," said Neo, "a software junkie, sounds familiar."

Trinity smiled at him. She was about to make a joke how they were rumored to be good in bed, but the doors opened just then.

The hallway held the same smell as the lobby and was extremely narrow, leaving Neo to walk behind Trinity to reach the door labeled 124. Trinity reached up to knock when the door opened quickly, revealing a pale and skinny middle-aged man. He had subtle features, cropped black hair, and had an almost evil glint in his eyes. He was rude and Trinity hadn't liked him since the first time she met him. His demeanor reminded her too much of Cypher, the man who had betrayed her and her crew so many years ago.

"What do you want this time?" Sphinx asked, his steely eyes glaring from Trinity to Neo.

"We need to talk," Trinity replied, barging in and storming past him into the apartment, Neo right behind her.

Sphinx closed the door, his eyes never leaving Trinity's. He was staring at her with an odd look in his eyes, somewhere between disdain and arrogance.

"About what?" Sphinx asked, in an icy tone, "do you work for a software company? If you do, you're not very good at recruitment proposals."

Trinity smiled smugly and said, "we're not from any company."

The man stood his ground though he seemed to become less sure of himself after that comment.

"Let's get one thing straight," said Trinity, talking in a very authoritarian voice, "we have some questions that need answers. First of all, do you know how to decipher codes effectively?"

Sphinx scoffed arrogantly.

"Are you kidding? I design some of the most elaborate and complex codes in the world. People spend their whole lives trying to break my codes. What's it to you though, I thought you weren't from a software company?"

"We're not," repeated Trinity.

"So do you work for the government or something?" Sphinx asked.

"Look, I'll ask the questions here," said Trinity in an aggravated voice. This guy sure knew how to get under someone's skin.

Sphinx stepped back at that comment and crossed his arms.

"Actually, I think we're done," he said in a strong voice. "You people don't scare me, whoever you are. I suggest you get the hell out of my apartment before I call the police."

Trinity really hated this guy. She suddenly wished she had a bigger gun to scare him shitless with. Nevertheless she decided to use what she had. She pulled out her handgun and pushed it forcefully into Sphinx's forehead, shoving him back against the door with a loud bang. Sphinx withered under the threat and held up his hands pathetically.

"Okay! Okay! You win! Whatever you want, I'll do it!" he said whimpering. He had no backbone and was probably just a prick in an attempt to cover it up.

Neo chose that moment to step forward and put a hand on Trinity's outstretched arm.

"Let's go," he said quietly but sternly, "we have our answer."

Trinity stood still for a few seconds before slowly lowering her gun, still glaring hatefully at the cowering man before her.

"We'll be back," she said coldly, before shoving Sphinx aside to exit the apartment.

Neo gave Sphinx a threatening look before heading out behind Trinity.

Trinity headed for the elevator and stepped in quickly, pressing the button as Neo walked in.

"Are you okay?" asked Neo.

Trinity was still reeling from the confrontation. She barely knew the guy, but had allowed him to get her so riled up.

"Yeah," Trinity answered softly, "it's just… he reminds me of…"

Trinity trailed off, knowing she didn't need to finish her sentence, Neo would know who she meant.

"Cypher," said Neo quietly, a blank expression on his face.

Trinity nodded and sighed heavily.

"At least we got the answer we needed. Though I'm not sure why Morpheus had us go to all this trouble just to ask a simple question like that."

Neo shrugged, "He has his reasons I'm sure."

They both trusted Morpheus infinitely, even though sometimes they didn't understand why he did the things he did. They always knew, just as they did now, that he always had his reasons.

The elevator opened and they walked through the lobby and out the front doors. The bright sunshine beat down upon them and Trinity was grateful that she no longer wore the slick constraining leather outfit. They had walked about halfway back to the alleyway when Neo stopped short.

Trinity stopped as well and turned to face him.

"Neo?" she asked worried, "what is it?"

Neo was looking off to the left down a side street, focused on something in the distance. Trinity followed his eyes and saw what she knew he had been staring at. It was a young girl. Trinity hadn't seen the girl through the matrix code earlier, but she somehow knew that it was exactly who this was.

The girl looked to be about fourteen. She had long dark hair and a tiny frame. She was wearing a pair of ratty old jeans, an oversized sweatshirt that hung off of her narrow body, and had a worn backpack slung over her shoulder. She was looking down as she walked, and didn't notice the two people staring at her from across the street.

Trinity looked back at Neo. His eyes seemed more focused than Trinity had ever seen them. She still didn't understand why he was so fascinated by some girl, who looked to Trinity, to be very average.

"Neo…" said Trinity in an imploring voice, "we really should get back."

The girl had rounded the corner and was now walking away from them, heading back to the building where they had just walked from. Trinity moved to grab Neo's hand when he took a step and headed back, following the girl.

"Neo!" said Trinity, more urgently, "where are you going?"

Neo didn't answer, but continued walking, leaving Trinity to scramble behind him, trying to catch up. She caught up and fell in step beside him.

"Neo, did you hear me? We need to get back," Trinity repeated insistently.

Trinity knew how Morpheus disliked when Neo would decide to do things like this. Trinity also knew that Morpheus relied on her in these times to remind Neo of his responsibility to follow orders.

"Neo, you know how Morpheus feels about you abandoning orders," said Trinity, voicing her thoughts.

"I know, I know. I just need to get a better look at her, from up close I mean," replied Neo, finally acknowledging Trinity's pleas.

Trinity was starting to get angry again. She hated how she always had to be the rational one, and take responsibility for Neo. She knew however, that once Neo was onto something it was impossible to persuade him to stop.

The girl was walking quite slowly, clearly distracted from her surroundings and her followers, as she made her way down a back alleyway just fifteen feet or so ahead. Neo stopped at the entrance to the alley, hiding behind the wall with Trinity behind him, peering around the corner to see the girl.

The girl stopped in front of a door that must have lead into the side of the small building that housed apartments. She grabbed the knob and turned it, only to find it was locked. She dropped the bag off her back and unzipped it rummaging around for what Trinity guessed was a key.

There was something so familiar about this girl. Trinity now understood why Neo had been so interested, though she still didn't see why he had felt the need to stalk her. Just as Trinity was about to ask if they could leave yet, Neo stepped out from the wall and headed straight for the girl. The girl looked up quickly when Neo approached and took a few steps back, clearing thinking that he meant her harm.

Neo stopped when she did that. Trinity was about to run up and claim that she and her 'husband' had gotten lost and needed directions, as a way of alleviating the situation, however Neo ruined her plan by speaking.

"What's your name?" he asked in a kind voice.

The girl still looked afraid, but now also very confused. She was probably trying to figure out why a complete stranger was asking her name. She was speechless for so long that Trinity wondered if the girl was maybe mute, until finally she spoke.

"Trinity" replied the girl in the tiniest voice.

It was right at that precise moment, as soon as the word registered in her mind, that Trinity swore she felt her heart stop.

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Ooooh dun dun dun. haha. Tell me what you think? do you like it, or hate it? Please read and review! I don't mind criticism, but just not anything too harsh please! Thanks! 


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks so much to those who reviewed. I fixed the few spelling mistakes that were in chapter two (thanks for the tip!). This chapter will explain the cliffhanger.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix… damn.

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Trinity held on tightly to the wall, trying to steady her body after a wave of shock ran through her. This girl had Trinity's name. Trinity wasn't exactly a common name, in or out of the matrix. What in the hell was going on? It couldn't be just a coincidence. After they had discovered that Neo was the one, no one believed in coincidences anymore. 

Neo seemed to be feeling just as confused Trinity was. He stood shockingly still, then after a few seconds he managed to mumble a word.

"What?" he asked, his voice strained with disbelief.

The girl seemed to remember the awkwardness of the situation, and quickly bent down, searching again for her key, looking scared. She found it and quickly unlocked the door, running in and slamming it behind her.

Neo was still standing in the middle of the alley, unmoving, his back to Trinity. She wondered what he was thinking. She was about to walk forward and ask him just that when her phone rang in her pocket. Neo turned when she reached in and took it out, answering it, her hands still shaking.

"Trinity!" It was Morpheus' voice. "What are you doing? Get to the exit now!"

Trinity was just about to tell him about the girl and ask if she and Neo could stay to try to talk with her, but he had already hung up. As much as Trinity wanted to ignore Morpheus' request and knock on the girl's door, she knew they had to follow orders. She put the phone back in her jacket pocket and looked up at Neo.

"We have to go," she said reluctantly.

"Yeah," was all Neo said, still in a bit of shock.

He looked back at the door one last time, before following Trinity back down the street to the alleyway. Once there, they walked through an old door into a deserted shop, where they knew the exit was and Trinity picked up the ringing phone first.

Trinity felt her body being launched forward, and opened her eyes to see herself back on the Neb in the familiar worn chair. Link unplugged her and moved over to unplug Neo as Trinity sat up, looking for Morpheus. She needed to tell him what happened. She needed someone to help her make sense of what all this meant, who the girl was.

Neo seemed to have the same idea as he copied her actions and they both rounded on Morpheus, who was sitting in a chair staring at the matrix code. He looked to be in deep thought, almost pained by something.

Neo began to speak, but was silenced by Morpheus' hand.

"Please," said Morpheus, "let us talk alone. Trinity, Neo, follow me."

Trinity and Neo followed Morpheus to the kitchen and sat down opposite him at the table, leaving a confused Link behind in the core.

Morpheus began after a few moments of silence.

"For so many years I worried about this day. I had hoped that it would never come, that I wouldn't have to explain all this to you." Morpheus spoke with genuine sincerity.

"Morpheus," said Neo, "what are you talking about?"

Morpheus looked up at Trinity and sighed nervously. Trinity felt fear race through her. Morpheus seemed scared, which was something Trinity was not used to.

"Fifteen years ago I made a decision. A decision which I've had to live with every day of my life since then. So many times I was afraid I'd made the wrong decision. Eventually I came to believe though, that I did what I had to do. However, at this moment, doubt fills my mind all over again."

Trinity knew that whatever this was, it was obviously very difficult for Morpheus. All the same, she really just wished he'd get down to the goddamn point. She wasn't in the mood for sentimental excuses, she wanted an explanation. He had been hiding something from them for fifteen years, and he needed to come out with it now. When Morpheus put his head in his hands, Trinity decided to voice her impatience.

"What decision Morpheus?" She was nervous and afraid but she spoke defiantly.

"Trinity, when Neo brought you back from the ship, when we thought you were dead…" Morpheus trailed off, his head still in his hands.

"What?" asked Trinity impatiently.

"You were pregnant," said Morpheus.

Trinity felt the air rush out of her lungs. She was pregnant? Why the hell hadn't they told her? What happened to the baby? Did it die? Did it live?

Trinity had so many questions in her head, she didn't know which one to shout at Morpheus first, so she just focused on trying to breathe again.

Neo had his head down, and was staring at the table. Morpheus looked at them both gravely and continued to speak.

"We decided to remove the baby. It was still alive, but only barely. We had the technology to keep it alive outside of Trinity's body, bringing it to full term in the lab."

Trinity interrupted Morpheus to cry out the question that was bothering her the most.

"Why didn't you tell me!?" she almost yelled.

"We were going to," said Morpheus, trying to pacify her with his tone, "but something happened."

Trinity swallowed and waited for Morpheus to continue.

"We were all in awe. The child of 'the One.' There was so much we wanted to know. We wondered if she had the same powers as Neo. We had so many questions. Of course, we all knew that she was not ours to test, she was yours to raise. At this time, Trinity was still in a coma, and we wanted to wait until we could tell you both. We thought it would be best that way."

Trinity swallowed when Morpheus said the word 'she.' Her baby had been a girl.

"But there was one doctor who didn't agree with us," continued Morpheus, "he said we should keep her and test her. He wanted to insert her into the matrix. He wanted to see if she would posses the same powers by subjecting her to the same life Neo had."

Trinity already knew where this was going. She had figured it out in her head, but waited for Morpheus to finish.

"He was disbanded from the medical team. We didn't realize however, just how far he would go. If we had known, we would have had him locked away. By the time we realized he had taken her, they were both long gone. We never saw him ever again, or the baby. Trinity when you woke up… I wanted to tell you. I wanted to tell you both. But, I just couldn't. I knew it would be too hard for you to live with. You'd have spent your lives trying to find her, and driven yourself mad. I couldn't let that happen to you, so I made a decision to never tell either of you. There were two other doctors that knew and we swore ourselves to secrecy."

Trinity felt grief, pain, and anger rise inside of her.

"You should have told us. We would have found her. Why didn't you look for her?" she said, emotion leaking through her words.

"I did," said Morpheus defensively, "we all did, the other doctors and I. We looked for years. We figured she was probably dead since the doctor would have had no way of getting her in without giving her plugs, and inserting her with Zion's technology. But he must have found a way. We had no idea how to locate her, in the fields or in the matrix. It wasn't until you mentioned that Neo had been watching a girl, that I began to hope. I ordered you guys to go in so I could look for myself. I do believe the girl is her. And I feel you believe it as well."

Neo hadn't spoken in a while and surprised both Morpheus and Trinity with what he said next.

"I knew it… I mean, I knew it wasn't possible, but I still just knew it. I don't know how. She said her name was 'Trinity,' so it has to be her. That's too much of a coincidence."

"Yes," said Morpheus, "I'm not sure how she came by that name."

Trinity began to feel very overwhelmed. It was all happening so fast. She had a child fifteen years ago. That child was still alive. She had a daughter, a fifteen year old daughter in the matrix. Trinity's throat felt dry and her head was pounding. It was so much to take in. A part of her still felt angry as well. Morpheus had hidden it from them all this time. Trinity felt betrayed.

"I understand if you're upset with me. I only did what I did because I thought it was right. I'm so sorry… " whispered Morpheus, his head down shamefully.

Morpheus then stood up and left, heading back for the front of the ship, not looking behind him at the couple sitting at the table.

Trinity felt tears welling up in her eyes. She felt so cheated. Nothing about the situation seemed fair. Not for her, for Neo, for Morpheus, and most of all for her daughter. The word seemed to carry such a new meaning already. Daughter. Trinity didn't feel like a mother, even though she had just become one. She felt afraid now. What did this mean?

Her thoughts were interrupted when Neo shifted to look at her. He noticed her tears and sighed pulling her into his arms. She hugged him back tightly, letting her emotion cling onto him. She needed him right now. He had lost a child too she remembered. He understood.

They hugged for a few minutes, before Neo suddenly pulled back, still holding onto Trinity, but looking her in the eye.

"You know what this means Trin? We have a daughter!" he said excitedly.

Trinity laughed and rolled her eyes. Neo was so naïve sometimes.

"Yeah," said Trinity in a slightly sarcastic tone, "a daughter who thinks we're stalkers who follow her home."

"We'll go get her, pull her out of the matrix, and explain who we are," said Neo, still sounding optimistic.

"Neo…" said Trinity sympathetically, "it's not really that simple. This isn't like buying a puppy, there's a little more to it than that. She has no idea who we are. She probably already has parents in the matrix. Besides, do you really think you know the first thing about raising a teenager?"

Neo slumped down looking defeated. He obviously hadn't considered all of that. Trinity felt bad for discouraging him. After all, she still did want to find a way to be with her daughter too.

"We'll talk to her Neo. Who knows, maybe it will work out," said Trinity, more cheerful in her tone. She smiled at Neo as he looked up and smiled too.

Neo leaned over and kissed Trinity deeply. As upset as Trinity had been only moments before, she could already feel the weight shifting off of her. Only Neo could do that for her.

"I love you," said Trinity.

"I love you too," replied Neo, kissing her once more.

They stood up together and walked back to the core, standing behind Link to look at the matrix code.

"Hey there," said Link, looking up for a moment at the two of them.

"What are you looking at?" asked Neo.

"Nothing really," replied Link, "trivial people doing trivial things."

The three stayed in silence, watching the code, all in deep thought about the day's events.

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I hope you liked this chapter. Let me know if you liked where I went with the story, if you didn't I'm sorry! Please review. Thanks! 


	4. Chapter 4

Again, thanks for the reviews on the last chapter! I always appreciate them:)

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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Trinity woke in her small dark room on the Neb, lying towards the wall. She rolled over to see Neo lying next to her still asleep. Trinity looked at the small clock in the corner of the room, it was already well into the morning. Neo hadn't gotten up and left her like he'd been doing lately. Trinity smiled to herself, and put a hand to Neo's face gently. He opened his eyes and smiled back at her. 

"Hey," he said sleepily.

"Thanks for staying this morning," said Trinity.

"No problem," said Neo, "after last night I was pretty tired."

Trinity grinned broadly, thinking of what he was referring to.

"Maybe we could even have a repeat this morning," said Neo, nuzzling his face into her neck.

Trinity laughed and said, "sorry, but we've already slept in long enough. We'd only get disturbed and I'd rather be able to finish what we start."

"Good point," said Neo, moving away to kiss her on the lips.

Trinity sat up and moved herself over to sit on the edge of the bed. She stretched before getting up and changing her clothes, Neo copying her. They kissed once more before heading out into the kitchen for breakfast.

Morpheus and Link were already eating and nodded their greetings when they walked in. Trinity sat down while Neo got them both breakfast, as this was their usual morning routine. Morpheus looked up when Neo had sat down and spoke to all three of them.

"We're going back in today. Sphinx is being unplugged whether he likes it or not. I spoke to the engineering team in Zion this morning and they're getting desperate. They need his help as soon as possible."

"Morpheus, I'm not so sure about him," said Trinity putting her spoon down, "I mean how do we even know he'll be willing to cooperate to help the team? He just doesn't seem like the collaborating type."

"I know what you mean," replied Morpheus, "but we still need him. We'll have to make him understand."

Trinity didn't think that was possible. More than that though, Trinity didn't want Sphinx to get unplugged because she didn't want him on the ship. Being around him put Trinity in a bad mood. She didn't want to have to endure living with him until they could dump him off at Zion, which probably wouldn't be for at least a week.

"What about Trinity?" asked Neo.

Both Morpheus and Trinity looked confused until Neo said, "I mean our daughter."

"Oh yes," said Morpheus, realization dawning on his face, "I figured first you could pay her a visit and talk to her. Also, I need you to get a sample of her blood so we can test to make sure she is your daughter. We don't want to assume anything if there's a chance that we're wrong."

Neo and Trinity both nodded. Morpheus had obviously later explained the situation to Link as he seemed unfazed by their conversation.

The four finished their breakfast and headed to the core. Neo climbed into the chair first and waited for Trinity to strap him in as usual. Trinity gave him a quick kiss before heading over to her own chair, Morpheus strapping her in this time.

"Alright, so where is Trinity now?" Link asked to himself, looking at the coding on the computer screens. A few moments passed before he said, "Ah! There she is, at the market. Alright, I'll take you to the same alleyway as yesterday, the market isn't far from there, up on 37th."

"We need to come up with another name for her before I really lose my patience and sanity," said Trinity in a frustrated tone.

Neo laughed and said, "how about just Trin for now?"

"Alright, I'm good with that," said Trinity.

Morpheus nodded before he walked over to plug them both in. Trinity felt the familiar sensation and opened her eyes to the alleyway. It was pouring rain today, and the air was thick and dark. Neo appeared beside her. They both had waterproof jackets on.

Trinity's cell phone rang in her pocket and she picked it up, letting Link know they were in and thanking him for their practical attire. She then pocketed it again, walking out into the street following Neo. They turned down the familiar streets and on to 37th avenue, the market just up ahead.

They walked in and brushed off the rain that had accumulating on their jackets. The market was very small and rather ancient like most of the buildings in this area. There was a man at the till who looked over at them, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. Trinity paid him no mind as they were used to always getting these looks from people. Neo was walking past the aisles, looking for Trin. He stopped when he spotted her down the canned foods isle.

Trinity was much more observant of Trin today, now knowing that she was her daughter. Trin had on the same jeans, but with a dark gray jacket that was also much too big for her like the sweatshirt she had on yesterday. Her long dark hair was straight down her back, damp with the rain. Her face was very pale but beautiful in a very innocent way. She seemed like a person who was very solitary, in the world and in her thoughts. Trinity thought that made sense since both her and Neo had the same tendencies for solitude.

Trin picked up a can of soup, and turned to walk down the aisle towards Neo and Trinity. She looked up and froze when she saw them, dropping the can to the floor with a loud metal clang. She whipped her head around, trying to see if anyone was around her to help, but the store was otherwise deserted. She made to run in the other direction, but Neo grabbed her arm and covered her mouth, before she could scream.

Trinity didn't like the way this was going. She never intended for them to scare the poor girl. She needed to try to explain to her. Trinity stepped forward and kneeled down before Trin, Neo behind her still covering her mouth.

"Please listen," said Trinity whispering, "we promise we're not going to hurt you. I know you don't know who we are but we just want to talk to you. It's very important. Please trust us."

Trinity put her hand on Trin's face and smiled kindly. She slowly pulled Neo's hand off Trin's mouth and stood up stepping back slightly, as if signaling to the girl that they were not going to attack her. She really didn't think it was going to work, as the child seemed so paranoid and jumpy to begin with, but miraculously, Trin stood her ground.

"What do you want?" she asked, her voice shaking a little.

"We just want to talk," said Neo softly from behind her.

Trin was obviously debating whether or not to comply with them or try again to run for her life. Trinity figured she was smart enough to understand that she couldn't outrun them and so she had no choice but to trust them. Trin swallowed, obviously still very nervous, before speaking.

"I have to buy this for my aunt, then we can go home and talk there."

"Thank you," said Trinity.

Trin nodded before picking up the can and walking over to the cashier, while Neo and Trinity waited just outside the market entrance. The cashier had eyed them so nervously, Trinity figured it was best that they leave the store as soon as possible. Trin paid the man, then walked outside, pulling up the hood on her jacket. She looked up at Neo and Trinity before walking back to her building.

When they got there, Trin pulled a key out of her pocket and opened up the door walking inside. Neo and Trinity followed, closing the door behind them. They all took off their jackets and set them down by their shoes. Trin was wearing a plain black t-shirt that actually fit. Trinity realized just how skinny she really was in clothes that fit her, and Trinity wondered if maybe she was sick. She'd only been a mother for a day, and already Trinity was worried about her daughter.

The apartment was unusually tiny, and was in the poorest condition. From the area of the front door, Trinity could already see the apartment in its entirety. The kitchen was straight ahead and to the left was a living room with a couch. To the right was a small bathroom and a bedroom, which was about the size of a closet. The entire place was dark and dusty and smelled of dirt. Basically, the place was a dump. Trinity was horrified that people actually had been living here.

Trin walked the few steps forward to the kitchen and placed the can of soup on the counter, before turning around to face Neo and Trinity.

"My aunt won't be home for another hour," said Trin, "so you can stay for a while."

Trinity smiled and nodded before sitting down in a chair at the small rickety table. Neo followed suit and sat down beside Trinity, looking around the apartment in disgust.

"You live with your aunt?" asked Trinity, focusing her attention back to Trin, who was standing leaning against the hideously stained kitchen counter.

"Yeah, well I call her my aunt, but she's not really. I never knew my family."

"Oh really?" asked Trinity, genuinely sympathetic.

"I was raised in a juvenile center until I was twelve. I hated it there though. I had one friend Skye, but she left to go live with her foster parents and I never saw her again. After that, I decided to leave. I went out for a day pass and just never went back again. I tried to get a job so I didn't have to live on the streets, but no one would hire me. Eventually I found Peg, my aunt, and she let me stay here. She found me one night just outside the door there sleeping in the alleyway, and I guess she felt sorry for me. She said I could stay here as long as I didn't eat much and went to school, so I could eventually get a job and help her pay the rent."

Trinity felt her heart break. She'd never heard anything so sad in her life and it happened to her own daughter. Trinity wanted to cry and pull Trin into her arms. She wanted to tell her how sorry she was that she hadn't been there to give her the care and love she so desperately needed. She knew it would have to wait however, and so instead she just said, "I'm so sorry to hear all that. What's your aunt like?"

"She's nice," said Trin simply, "she gives me her old clothes to wear. The only outfit I have, one she bought for me, are my jeans and this t-shirt."

"So you go to school you said?" asked Trinity. She wanted to know so much about Trin, she didn't even know where to start.

"Yeah, I missed a few years of school when I ran away, but I managed to catch up. I go to the middle school just a few blocks over," said Trin.

"Do you do well in school?" asked Neo. His voice was strained and a little hard to hear.

"Yeah," said Trin nodding, "straight A's!" she said proudly, smiling.

Trinity beamed at her. She felt so proud. After all that she'd been through she still managed to motive herself to do well in school. She was amazing.

"So," said Trin, "what was it you want to talk to me about?"

Trinity had completely forgotten why they had come. She tried to think of how to begin but realized she was at a loss for words. How could the poor girl ever understand?

"You don't know who we are," said Neo, "but we know who you are. We've been watching you. You're much more important than you might think. We'd like to show you something. Could we come back tomorrow?"

Neo had found the exact words to say, just enough to prepare Trin, but not enough to scare her.

Trin said nothing for a moment, looking nervously between Neo and Trinity.

"I don't understand," she said, "but… okay."

"Oh," said Trinity, "there's one more thing. We need to take a blood sample."

Trin looked scared again. "Why?" she asked, her voice weak.

"We just need to do a test that's all," said Trinity, pulling a needle and a small empty vile out of her pocket.

"I don't know," said Trin shakily, backing up a bit.

"It's alright," said Trinity soothingly, "I promise I know what I'm doing, just sit down at the table."

Trin slowly edged forward and took a seat at the table, eying the needle warily. She looked away as Trinity padded her skin for a vein and gently poked the needle in, filing up the vile.

"Okay," said Trinity, pulling out the needle, "put some pressure on that now."

Trin did as she was told and bit her lip nervously.

"Alright," said Trinity standing up, "we have to go now, but we'll see you tomorrow. Thank you for trusting us."

Trin smiled a bit and nodded. Trinity could tell she was starting to trust them, which filled her with hope.

Neo and Trinity put on their jackets and stepped out into the rain, as Trin waved before closing the door behind them.

"I think that went well," said Neo.

"I think so too," said Trinity smiling.

Trinity took the vile of blood out of her pocket and looked at it thoughtfully. She knew they had to go talk to Sphinx, but Trinity wanted to test the blood immediately. At the same time however, Trinity almost felt it was unnecessary. Trin was their daughter, she knew it, just as Neo had. She already felt so attached to her. A part of Trinity wanted to throw the vile away, for fear that it might reveal that Trin wasn't their daughter. It was strange to think that just a small vile of blood could cause so much emotion in a person.

* * *

I wanted to get this chapter up tonight because I won't have time for a few days, so I'm afraid I may have not have spell-checked it as well as I would have liked. I know it might be a little confusing with the names being so similar, so I'll fix that in the next chapter. Nonetheless, I hope you liked this chapter. Tell me what you think! 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

Neo and Trinity walked briskly through the rain, reaching the complex in a short time. Trinity was just about to push the buzzer, when an elderly man exited the building and kindly held the door open for them. Trinity grinned, thinking of how surprised Sphinx would be when they knocked on his door unexpectedly.

She and Neo walked to the elevator and stepped inside, the doors closing behind them. Neo pressed the familiar button and stepped back, speaking quietly.

"Do you think we'll be able to unplug her?"

Trinity knew he was talking about Trin. She wasn't sure if they could or not, and she decided to answer honestly.

"I don't know. We'll have to talk to Morpheus."

Neo seem satisfied with this answer as he was silent for the rest of the way up. When the elevator doors opened, Trinity led the way once again to Sphinx's apartment. She knocked twice and waited. It was silent behind the door and after two solid minutes, Trinity looked at Neo and he nodded. That was her que. Trinity stepped back and kicked open the door violently. They walked inside and looked around for Sphinx. The apartment seemed vacant. Trinity picked up her cell and called Link.

"Where is he?" asked Trinity.

"Bedroom closet," said Link.

"Thanks," said Trinity as she hung up the phone, looked at Neo, and nudged her head in the direction of the bedroom. He followed her as they walked inside and Trinity approached the closet doors. She pulled them open quickly to reveal Sphinx, his back was to the wall and his face was contorted in fear. He was shaking and whimpering. Trinity guessed she must have made quite an impression on him the last time they were here. Trinity turned her head sideways at him, an amused look on her face.

"Hiding are we?" she asked in a cool voice.

Her teasing seemed to anger him as he stopped his pathetic charade and instead glared at her menacingly.

"I'll do whatever you want, just leave me alone," he said, spitting with anger.

"Good," said Neo, pulling him out of the closet roughly by the collar of his shirt. Neo threw him down onto the floor. Both Trinity and Neo were being rather unkind to him, but they just couldn't find it in their hearts to be civil to such a jerk.

"We need you to come with us," said Trinity.

"Fine," said Sphinx, "whatever."

He followed them out, making sure he was at least five steps behind them, until they reached the elevator. He stayed in the corner while Neo and Trinity stood side by side remaining silent the entire ride down.

They reached the bottom floor and walked out into the street. It was still raining quite hard and Sphinx didn't have a jacket. Trinity didn't feel sorry for him. In fact, she purposely waited around in the rain until they caught sight of the car that pulled up in front of them.

Morpheus was driving. They climbed inside the car and headed for the unplugging station, an empty room in an abandoned building. The equipment was already set up when they arrived, and all they had to do was force Sphinx to sit down and cooperate while they traced him. They didn't give him a choice of the red pill or blue pill, but rather Trinity shoved the red pill down his throat. He had begun to rebel their orders once he saw all the computer equipment, but Trinity just pulled out her gun and he complied like a child.

"Alright, get ready," said Morpheus, finding Sphinx in the computer.

"Get ready for what? What are you guys doing to me? I changed my mind, I want to go back." He was pleading desperately with them now.

"Too late for that," said Trinity, watching him start to gasp and sputter as the pill took effect on him.

He yelled out one final time before being consumed by the coding, signaling that he was now awake in the real world.

Morpheus took his cell phone out of his pocket and called Link.

"He's out," said Morpheus.

He hung up the cell and they waited. A few seconds later, the phone in the corner of the room rang loudly. Morpheus walked over and turned to look back at Trinity before he picked it up.

"So you have the sample?" asked Morpheus.

Trinity grabbed the vile of Trin's blood out of her pocket and held it up for Morpheus to see.

"Good," said Morpheus, "the testing supplies are set up just through there." He pointed to a door at the other side of the room.

Trinity nodded and watched Morpheus pick up the phone and disappear before her eyes. Morpheus and Link would be busy all afternoon helping Sphinx to recover, leaving her and Neo the time to test Trin's blood.

Trinity motioned for Neo to follow her into the testing room. Trinity opened the door to a full out medical laboratory. She loved the matrix.

She walked over to a counter with stands of test tubes, syringes, and antiseptic. Trinity motioned for Neo to come over and he looked at her puzzled, until she picked up a needle and grabbed his arm.

"Wait!" he cried defensively, "why do you need _my_ blood?"

"We have to compare one of our blood samples to hers," replied Trinity matter-of-factly.

"But why me?" he asked, still looking upset.

"Because I know how to do this. Now, calm down and hold still," said Trinity, as if soothing a child.

Neo groaned and looked away as Trinity cleaned his skin and inserted the needle into his arm. The vile slowly filled up with blood and Trinity pulled the needle back out.

"There, that wasn't so bad," she said, clearly amused by Neo's discomfort.

He gave her an unimpressed look before crossing his arms and watching her work. Trinity took out the vile of Trin's blood and placed both samples in test tubes. She then added different chemicals, changing their colors. Neo seemed extremely confused by what she was doing.

"Where did you learn to do this?" he asked her.

"Uploaded training, silly," replied Trinity.

Neo nodded his head, "right."

"So?" asked Neo, after a few moments of watching Trinity stare at the test tubes silently.

Trinity was waiting for a sudden drastic color change. The change would mean that the blood types matched and were genetically similar. So far the samples hadn't changed color, and with each passing second Trinity was getting more and more nervous. What if the color didn't change? What if it did? Just one tiny change and it would be 99.9 accurate. Trinity held her breath, completely ignoring Neo's impatience.

Minutes went by and still no change. Trinity waited a few more minutes before finally turning to face Neo. How could she tell him? He would be absolutely crushed. He may not even believe her. But tests don't lie. Trinity sighed deeply.

"Neo…" she started, "I'm sorry. I know how much you wanted it to be her. I did too."

"No," said Neo, "don't tell me…"

Neo bent down to look at the samples, a mystified look on his face.

"Trinity," he said firmly, "she is our daughter. I know she is."

"No," said Trinity in a barely audible voice, "she's not."

Neo stood up and looked around the lab. He put his hand to his mouth and bent his head down slowly.

Trinity knew how upset he was. She could feel the tension and pain behind his movements.

Suddenly Neo threw all the medical equipment off a counter in front of him. They were mostly made of glass and shattered onto the floor. It was so loud and unexpected that it made Trinity jump back in fear. She couldn't remember Neo ever doing anything so violent. He usually just withdrew into himself when he was angry. Acting out like this was not something he did ever. Trinity realized he must have been a lot more attached to Trin that she thought.

Trinity wanted to put her arms around him and ease his pain, but she was afraid to do so. She didn't want to get in the way of his anger. It wasn't until she saw him sobbing, his hands down on the counter, that Trinity knew he was only disappointed and hurt now. She walked up and he turned around to hug her tightly.

"I'm so sorry Neo, I really am," said Trinity genuinely, "I wanted it to be her too."

Trinity held onto him for a few minutes until he broke away.

"I'm okay," he said, pretending to act composed, but Trinity knew he was still extremely upset. He was just starting to feel ashamed. All the same, Trinity let him go. He walked over to the other side of the room and sat down in a chair, his head down in his hands.

Trinity sighed once more and looked at the samples on the counter. That was when she noticed it. The sample had changed. It was a bright magenta color that was definitely not just a trick of her eyes.

"Neo!" said Trinity urgently.

He picked up his head, looking at her confused.

"Neo, the sample. It changed. I just didn't wait long enough. It is her. She's our daughter," said Trinity, her voice almost shaking.

Neo stood up, looking shocked.

"You mean?" began Neo, "You mean… she's really our daughter?"

Trinity nodded her head, tears threatening to pour out. They had found her. They had found their daughter. After fifteen years, they finally had their daughter.

Neo ran over to Trinity, hugging her tightly. Trinity couldn't remember the last time she had felt so happy.

"We have to go get her," said Neo, "I know what you said about her not being ready and us not knowing what to do, but I don't care. We have to go get her Trinity. We've waited fifteen years, and I can't wait any longer."

"Alright," said Trinity, "but we have to talk to her first. We have to tell her the truth and find out if she wants it too before we do anything."

"Of course," said Neo, "let's go now."

Trinity laughed at his eagerness.

"Wait," she said, "let me call Morpheus."

Neo slumped down impatiently, making Trinity laugh again.

She took out her cell phone from her pocket and called for Link. He answered and handed it over to Morpheus when she asked for him.

"Morpheus," said Trinity slowly, "it's her."

She heard Morpheus sigh on the other end, a mixture of relief and joy.

"Alright," he said, "go get her. If she's ready, we can unplug her today."

"Alright," replied Trinity before hanging up her phone and putting it back in her pocket. Neo was looking at her expectantly.

"Well," said Trinity, "let's go get her."

* * *

To start off with, I was going to wait until Trin was out of the matrix before they tested her blood, cause then it would be real, but I didn't know how to do that with the last chapter being the way it was. It would be impossible to test matrix blood in the real world, so I had to do the testing in the matrix too. I didn't set it up as well as I could have and I apologize. I also don't know enough about blood testing, and I'm sorry if you realized that's probably not how they actually do paternity tests.

Secondly, I know you might be wondering what Sphinx has to do with the rest of the plot, but I assure you he will be relevant in later chapters.

Let me know how this chapter was, despite my insufficiencies. I hope I spell-checked it better this time!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

Neo and Trinity were walking down the rainy streets back to Trin's small apartment. They'd decided to tell her the truth and hope that she could accept what they had to tell her. Trin answered the door looking puzzled to see them again. It had only been a matter of hours since they left.

"I thought you were coming back tomorrow?" asked Trin in a hushed voice. She seemed quite nervous about them being there.

"We have to tell you something," replied Trinity, "it's important."

"Now isn't such a good time," said Trin, her eyes to the floor.

"Who is it?" asked a hoarse voice from inside the apartment.

"It's just… friends from school," answered Trin, trying to sound nonchalant. She turned back to face Neo and Trinity. She stayed in thought for a moment before speaking.

"Alright, but we have to go somewhere else. Just give me a second."

Trin closed the door and disappeared inside for a few minutes. They could hear an argument from inside and some loud banging. Trinity wondered if maybe this woman Trin stayed with wasn't as nice as Trin had made her out to be. She had the urge to go inside and rescue her daughter from the situation.

Trin suddenly opened the door and closed it behind her quickly, looking flushed.

"Sorry," she said, "she wasn't exactly thrilled about me leaving."

Trinity just smiled weakly and motioned for Trin to follow them. They walked back to the unplugging station and sat Trin down in the same chair where Sphinx had sat just earlier that day. Trin was looking around at the computers and equipment with a mix of intrigue and apprehension. She probably knew that something big was about to happen.

Neo stood leaning against the wall, nodding to Trinity to tell Trin. Trinity sat down in a chair and began.

"This morning we took the sample of your blood so that we could do a DNA test. The test worked and it told us something," Trinity stopped there to catch her breath she had been holding. Trin looked expectantly at her, waiting for her to continue.

"You're… our daughter," said Trinity slowly.

Trin's eyes opened wide and she looked from Neo to Trinity quickly. She had a look of shock and disbelief on her face. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Within a few moments however, she seemed to collect her thoughts.

"You're my parents?" she asked uncertainly.

"Yes," replied Trinity, unable to read Trin's face.

Trin seemed to be lost in her thoughts, as she sat staring at the floor for a long period of time until she finally spoke again.

"Where have you been? What happened to you?" asked Trin, now looking almost angry.

"I know you have lots of questions, and we'll answer them for you," said Trinity, "but you'll need to some with us somewhere."

"What do you mean, I thought we were already here?" asked Trin, still looking apprehensive.

"I mean you'll have to leave your home and stay with us somewhere far from here," said Trinity. She wasn't sure how to explain it to Trin so that it would make any sense. Talking about what the matrix was, and how she was living in a computer program wouldn't do any good since Trin was too well entrenched in her world.

"Why?" asked Trin, "can't you just tell me now. I don't even really know you."

She started to get rather shaky and Trinity could sense fear in her voice. She had to do something to alleviate her anxiety.

"I can't explain anything to you now, because it won't make any sense," said Trinity, "you just have to trust us and make a decision."

Trin stayed silent for a minute, looking sad and confused.

"Will I ever come back?" she asked.

Trinity wasn't sure how to answer her. If she said yes it would almost be a lie since she could never truly go back.

"I'm not sure," replied Trinity, "I suppose you could if you wanted to."

Trin seemed a little relieved by the answer, but was obviously still in contemplation about their request.

"We can give you a few minutes to think about all this," said Trinity standing up.

"No," said Trin quickly, "I'll go."

Trinity smiled at her. She had been so afraid that Trin wouldn't agree to come. She didn't know what she'd do if she'd had to let her go. Trinity wasn't sure if she could have done that. She was so relieved she didn't have to now. She looked over at Neo who was also smiling. Trinity knew he had been feeling the same way she was.

"Are you sure?" asked Trinity, "you should only come if you want to, not because you feel you have to."

Trin looked down at the floor before answering in a sad voice.

"I don't really have anything to lose."

"What about your aunt? You may not see her for a while," reminded Trinity, making sure that Trin had considered this.

"She told me today she wants me to leave soon anyway," said Trin still looking at the floor.

It took everything she had for Trinity not to grab her in her arms right then and tell Trin how important she was in the real world. Instead, she sighed heavily and turned to Neo.

"Alright," said Trinity, "get ready to trace her position."

Trinity walked over to Trin and handed her a red pill and a glass of water.

"Take this," said Trinity softly, "it'll make you feel a little weird."

Trin took the pill and looked at it uncertainly. Trinity was waiting for her however, so she put the pill in her mouth, took a drink of water, and swallowed heavily.

Trinity couldn't help herself as she ran her hand lightly through Trin's long black hair. It would all be gone soon, leaving her head completely shaved. Trin looked up at her surprised, but seemed to actually respond kindly to the gesture, smiling up at Trinity.

Trinity hooked up Trin's heart and blood pressure monitors and walked over to another computer while Neo was trying to find Trin in the system. A few minutes passed before Trinity noticed that Trin's heart rate was starting to increase. She looked up and saw that Trin was getting rather nervous and looked like she might be having a small panic attack. She got worse and the computer started to sound warningly.

"Have you found her yet?" asked Trinity looking at Neo.

"Yeah," said Neo, "anytime now."

Trin looked awful. She was hyperventilating and shaking violently. Trinity became worried that the pill may not have worked properly, but then it took effect. The familiar coding enveloped Trin's body, and signified her waking in the real world. Trinity breathed deeply, before pulling her phone out of her pocket to call Link.

"Link," she said when he answered, "she's out. Could we have an exit?"

"Sure thing," he said sounding cheerful.

The phone in the corner of the room rang and Trinity walked over to pick it up. A second later, she woke up on the Neb. She swung her legs over the edge of the chair after Link unplugged her, and stretched out quickly. They had been in there almost all day and Trinity felt her muscles strain from not moving for so long.

Neo stood up beside her and the two of them moved down to the bottom of the ship waiting for Trin to be carried in. The hatch opened and a small body was pulled into the ship. Neo waited for Trinity to wrap Trin into a blanket, before he carried her up to the ship's medical room. They entered and Morpheus looked up from Sphinx's body that lying on the table covered in pins. Neo laid Trin down on a table behind Sphinx and Morpheus walked over looking at her with admiration.

"It's really her," said Morpheus smiling down at Trin.

Trin had been unconscious when the ship pulled her up, but suddenly stirred slightly on the table. She opened her eyes carefully, trying to take in her surroundings.

"Where am I?" she asked groggily.

Trinity walked over and placed a hand across her forehead.

"Go back to sleep," she said softly, "you'll feel better when you wake up."

Trin breathed unevenly then slowly closed her eyes and went back to sleep.

"Alright," said Morpheus, "Trinity I'll need your help prepping her for muscle reconstruction while I finish with Sphinx."

Neo looked down at Trin one last time before walking out of the room. Morpheus headed over to finish inserting needles into Sphinx's body.

Trinity took the blanket off Trin's small body, but made sure to keep her modestly covered. Trin was even skinnier in the real world if that was even possible. Her bones protruded from her rib cage and her shoulders jutted out hardly. Trinity would have to force feed her for a while until she gained back enough weight.

Trinity took a cloth from the counter and proceeded to clean off the excess fluid that Trin's body had been immersed in. Trin's head was shaved of course, giving her a very different look than in the matrix. She still looked very feminine, but Trinity felt she resembled Neo quite strongly. It was strange to see plugs on her where there had been only pale skin before.

Morpheus came back over with a tray of pins. It would take them well into the night to insert them all, but Trinity was more than ready to stay up. Trinity looked over at Morpheus as he began to insert the pins. He seemed tired and Trinity realized he'd been at this all day. He needed a rest.

"You're tired," said Trinity, "you should get some rest. Send Neo in to help me."

Trinity was surprised at how easily Morpheus gave in as he said, "alright," and put down a pin, washing his hands before walking out.

Neo walked in a few minutes later, looking excited.

"What are you so happy about?" asked Trinity, "you hate doing this stuff usually. You always try to get out of helping."

"Yeah I know," Neo replied, "but this is her."

Trinity smiled and handed Neo a pair of gloves, moving the tray of pins between them. The computer hooked up to Sphinx's heart monitors beeped loudly. It was a normal occurrence, but caused Trinity and Neo to look over.

"Looks like he'll be awake by tomorrow," said Neo. The procedure didn't take the same amount of time as it did when he was unplugged. It generally only lasted a day or two now.

"Yeah," said Trinity coldly, "and might I say that he's even more unattractive in the real world."

Neo laughed as he continued to carefully place pins in Trin's leg muscles. He was being very cautious in his work, causing him to proceed at only about one tenth as fast as usual, much to Trinity's displeasure.

Trinity thought about what Trin had said before they unplugged her, about how she had nothing to leave behind. Trinity was almost grateful now that it was the case. She knew that they could make up for all the years of loneliness in Trin's life. Trin could have two loving parents, not to mention Morpheus as a third guardian. Trinity knew that Link would also be happy to have some different company on the ship, and would no doubt spend all his time showing her around and teaching her about the computers.

Zion would be a whole different world for Trin as well. Trin had no idea what she was in for. People would lavish her with attention and bring her gifts, anything she ever wanted she would have. She would go from having an invisible status in the matrix to a celebrity status in the real world.

In no time at all, Trinity inserted the last pin and sighed, removing her gloves. They had worked all night and would no doubt have to sleep for most of the day to make up for it. Trinity looked up at Neo who was cleaning off a dot of blood on Trin's bare foot. He seemed thoroughly exhausted and didn't notice Trinity walking over to him. He looked up when she rested her head his shoulder, taking his hand in her own.

"Do you think she'll be happy here?" asked Neo, speaking softly.

"I hope so," replied Trinity, looking Trin over.

"She kind of looks like you," said Neo smiling.

"Really?" asked Trinity, turning to look him in the eye, "I think she kind of looks like you."

Neo put his arms around Trinity and kissed her deeply. They were just getting into the kiss when a sound came from across the room. They looked over to see Sphinx struggling to sit up, the pins gone from his body. He looked over at them and scrunched up his eyes, as if trying to recognize who they were.

"Hey," he said weakly, "what the hell did you do to me?"

Trinity looked at Neo one last time before leaving the room scowling. She did not want to hear Sphinx's voice right now. Sleep was all that she could handle.

* * *

I hope you like the story so far. Tell me if you have any suggestions. Thanks! 


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

Trinity woke up after a restful sleep. She rolled over expecting to see Neo beside her but she was alone in the bed. She sighed disappointingly, and then looked over at the clock to see that it was almost seven at night. She had slept all day. She felt her stomach churn painfully and realized she forgot to eat before she went to sleep. She pulled herself up and walked out to the kitchen. 

Neo was stilling at the table alone, eating. He looked up when Trinity walked in and smiled at her.

"I just got up a few minutes ago. If you're wondering why I didn't wake you too it's because I wanted to let you sleep."

"Oh," said Trinity smiling at him, feeling a bit relieved that he hadn't merely abandoned her.

She got some food and sat down at the table opposite Neo and began to eat. She wondered how Trin was doing, she should be awake soon. She decided to go to the medical room after she finished to check up on her.

Morpheus walked in just then, looking at Neo and Trinity before speaking.

"I just wanted to let you know, she's fully recovered. She's sleeping in Neo's old room. We should let her be until she wakes up on her own. I imagine she'll be rather disoriented and confused at first. I'd recommend you don't push her too soon, be selective about what you disclose to her, until she's had more time to understand everything."

Trinity knew what he meant. They shouldn't tell her about Neo and how important she was in the real world until she at least understood what the matrix was. Trinity nodded to let him know she understood fully and watched him leave again. She looked over at Neo who had resumed eating. Trinity caught his eyes and smiled widely at him. He smiled back.

"I love you," she said.

"I love you too," he said, reaching over to grab her hand, "sorry I maybe don't say it enough."

Trinity shook her head, "you do."

Just then the kitchen door opened slowly. They both looked over expectantly, thinking Morpheus had come back to tell them something. The door had only opened a foot or so and remained still, no one visible in the doorway. Neo looked at Trinity confused until a face emerged, peeking inside, before opening the door wider. It was Trin. She looked terrified.

Trinity stood up and walked over to her, but Trin backed away dangerously when she did this, looking scared. Trinity stopped, surprised by her fear. Didn't Trin trust them now?

Trinity then saw tears silently fall down Trin's cheeks. She was shaking slightly, trying to balance herself against the door. Trinity thought she must have been in a mild shock.

Trinity chanced a slow step forward, but Trin made a small scared noise before turning abruptly and running away. Trinity turned back to look at Neo who had stopped eating and saw still staring when Trin had been, looking sympathetic.

Trinity sighed and proceeded to walk out of the kitchen. She guessed that Trin must have ran back into Neo's room where she had woken up. Trinity walked down and looked into the room, the door still wide open. The room was empty. She carried on looking in Link's empty room, Morpheus' room, and her and Neo's room. Every room was empty.

Trinity walked to the last room, knowing it was where Sphinx was resting. She opened the door slowly and looked in to see Sphinx's limp body on the bed in deep sleep. The rest of the room was vacant, and she closed the door quietly.

Trinity reasoned that Trin couldn't have gotten too far, the ship was only so big. She walked down to the core and saw Link sitting at the computers. He turned when she entered and looked at her puzzled as he noticed her searching eyes.

"What're you looking for?" he asked curiously.

"You haven't seen Trin around have you?" replied Trinity, "she ran away and she isn't in her room."

"Nope," replied Link glancing around the room quickly, "no runaway girl down here."

He turned back to his computer, as Trinity nodded before continuing along.

Trinity realized she hadn't looked in the medical room yet. She walked in, checking all the cupboard and under the tables. The room was also vacant. She was starting to get concerned. Was it possible Trin had managed to escape the ship? She didn't want to think about what that could mean. She walked a little more briskly now to the front of the ship. Morpheus looked up when she opened the door to the pilot's room.

"I can't find Trin," said Trinity.

"What do you mean?" asked Morpheus, "she's not in her room?"

"No," replied Trinity, "she came into the kitchen and ran when she saw us. I've looked everywhere and I can't find her."

"She must be somewhere," reasoned Morpheus, "the ship isn't that big."

Morpheus stood up and followed Trinity back out and into the kitchen. Neo was washing out the dishes when they walked in.

"What is it?" he asked, surprised by their concerned looks.

"I can't find Trin," said Trinity, "I've looked everywhere. She just disappeared."

"She can't be far," said Morpheus again, "Trinity, you check the rooms, Neo you check the engine room, and I'll go to the core."

Trinity realized she'd forgotten about the engine room. She nodded at Morpheus and headed back for the rooms. She looked thoroughly in each one, making sure she hadn't overlooked the dark corners. As she had concluded earlier, each one was empty. She walked back to the core when Morpheus was looking under loose floor panels. Trin sure had managed to find a good hiding spot.

"I checked the rooms again," said Trinity, "still empty."

Morpheus stood and put his hand to his forehead, thinking. Link was watching them search.

"Could she have used an escape door to get out of the ship?" Link asked.

Trinity swallowed, thinking of the outcome she'd thought of earlier herself. She hoped that Trin hadn't done this. The ship was docked underground, but inside a maze of sewer pipe systems. They'd never be able to find Trin if she'd run away through a pipe. There were just too many to search. She began to feel scared. She had just found Trin, she didn't want to imagine losing her again so quickly. She took a deep breath and saw Morpheus' face, etched with the same concern.

Just then Neo walked in, an relieved expression on his face.

"I found her, but I can't get her out," he said.

Trinity and Morpheus followed Neo down some stairs and inside a heavy steel door into the noisy engine room. It was a large room but was packed with steaming machinery. The air was humid and heavy and Trinity coughed as she made her way down the side of the room, moving between large pipes and boilers.

Neo stopped and pointed under a large electrical box. There was a tiny space between the box and floor, only about two feet high and two feet wide. Trinity had to get down on her knees to see down the long hole. Trin was sitting crouched down tightly, about six feet down the dark space. She looked at Trinity with fear in her eyes. She knew she had been found and would be caught.

Trinity knew it would be almost impossible to try to crawl through and pull her out without hurting one or both of them. She knelt down and looked Trin in the eyes as gently as she could. The room was loud but in the dark space it wasn't hard for Trinity's voice to reach Trin.

"Trin," she said desperately, "please come out. We won't hurt you, we'll explain everything. You can't stay down there forever, it's dangerous in here. Please, I don't want to have to pull you out."

Trin swallowed nervously, but stayed right where she was. Trinity knew she would just have to keep prodding her.

"Trin," she said more urgently, "please come out."

Trin shifted slightly, but still did not make to come out.

Trinity sighed deeply and sat up for a second, looking at Neo and Morpheus above her.

"She won't come out," she said sadly.

"She can't stay down there long," said Morpheus, "it's too hot in here and she could get hurt. You'll have to just pull her out forcibly."

Trinity bit her lip in thought. She knelt back down and tried one more time to reason with Trin.

"Sweetheart," she tried in a gentle voice, "I won't force you out because I don't want to hurt you, but you can't stay down here. Please come out."

Trin looked at her for a few moments before slowly moving towards Trinity. Trinity felt relief wash through her and she reached for Trin's hand. Trin looked at it then took it shaking a little. Trinity pulled her out of the hole and helped her stand up.

Tears were dried on her face and she was smudged with grease, her skin red from the heat. She was wearing a loose fitting off white sweater and a pair of Trinity's old pants that had to be tied up to stay on. Her sweater was dirty with grunge and oil and was now ripped in a few places.

When she managed to stand up she surprised them all by hugging Trinity tightly around the middle, burying her face in Trinity's sweater and sobbing. Trinity felt a rush of emotion wash through her and she gently placed a hand on Trin's back, rubbing it soothingly. Trinity bent down and looked at Trin's bloodshot eyes.

"I'm so sorry," said Trinity, feeling tears well up in her own eyes, "I'm sorry that we didn't tell you more. I'm sorry that you're scared. It's not your fault, it's mine."

Trinity wrapped her arms around her once again, tightly pulling Trin against herself. Neo placed a hand gently on her shoulder.

"We should go," said Morpheus looking around at the steamy engine room, his face sweating a little with the intense heat radiating around them.

Trinity stood up slowly and grabbed Trin's hand pulling her along as they walked out of the engine room, Neo and Morpheus behind them. They walked back out to the core and Link looked up when they entered.

"Hey there," he said smiling, his eyes falling on Trin, "you got to show me that hiding place of yours, you know, in case I ever need to get away myself." He winked at her.

Trin managed a small smile, as she wiped her tear stricken face on her sweater. She was still holding onto Trinity's hand possessively, and Trinity noticed she squeezed it a little tighter when Link addressed her. She was still somewhat afraid.

"Are you hungry?" asked Trinity, looking down at Trin. Trin looked up and shook her head, her face resuming its serious demeanor.

"Come on," said Trinity pulling her to the kitchen, "you should eat anyway."

"Hey," called Link, causing Trin to turn around, "would you like to help me with something tomorrow?"

Trin paused a second before nodding her head, making everyone in the room smile. Trinity knew Trin and Link would become friends, Link had such a likeable quality.

Morpheus walked back to the front of the ship, while Neo stayed behind with Link to let Trinity and Trin have some time alone to talk.

Trinity reached the kitchen and motioned for Trin to sit down at the table, while she got her something to eat. Trinity sat back down and placed the dish in front of Trin and gave her a spoon. Trin looked down at the slimy concoction with suspicious eyes.

"This is all we have," said Trinity apologetically, "it doesn't taste great but it has everything you need."

Trin slowly ate a spoonful, making a face but swallowing it quickly. She looked back at Trinity with a questioningly look and asked in a barely audible voice, "where am I?"

Trinity took a deep breath before attempting to explain the whole story. She explained about their ship, and the difference between the real world and the matrix. She tried to use a simple explanation, without too much complicated terminology. She explained about the past, about the machines, and also about the war being over. She made sure to tell Trin how safe the real world was now and about how they continued to save people.

Trin remained silent for the entire conversation, looking at Trinity speak with confusion and fear. She seemed shocked as was to be expected. Trinity knew that it would take a few days for it all to sink in, perhaps even longer. Trinity paused in her story to remind Trin to keep eating.

"What about me?" asked Trin after she'd reluctantly taken another mouthful of the slimy food.

Trinity then began on the story of how Trin was born and about the doctor who kidnapped her. She told Trin about how they had found her. She had to explain who she and Neo were, their pasts and their importance, in order to make sense of the events. She explained how admired they were and why Trin's birth so was significant. Trin seemed intrigued when Trinity talked about that part.

"I know it's hard to absorb," said Trinity after she finished, "but it'll get easier."

Trin nodded slowly and took another spoonful of food, before putting down her spoon. She had eaten about half of it when she looked up at Trinity.

"You don't have to eat anymore for now," said Trinity.

Trin looked grateful and pushed the dish away, leaning her arms on the table tiredly. She seemed to be much calmer and no longer so afraid. She looked up at Trinity, her face serious and contemplative.

"So… your name is Trinity too?" she asked carefully.

"Yeah," said Trinity, "that's how we thought you might be who you were."

Trin looked down in thought for a minute before speaking again.

"I guess that doctor must have given me the name."

"I guess so," said Trinity.

"I should pick a new name," said Trin.

"You don't have to," said Trinity.

"No," said Trin, "but I should. It doesn't feel like my name anymore… what would you have named me?"

She spoke the last part slowly, looking at Trinity with emotion in her eyes.

Trinity had never thought about it. She hadn't known what she would have named her daughter. She was silent for a minute thinking about what name to pick.

"I suppose I would have called you… Lena" Trinity finally replied.

"Lena" repeated Trin, "I like it."

She smiled at Trinity genuinely and Trinity felt her heart fill with emotion. She had been worried that Trin wouldn't respond to her like she had hoped she would. She felt that fear melt away.

"Alright," said Trinity smiling back at her, "Lena it is then."

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I'm flattered that so many people have put this story either on their favourites or on alert. Thanks so much! ) 


	8. Chapter 8

In this chapter I'm attempting to change a character's name and I know that's basically impossible to do smoothly. I was worried it was too confusing to have Trinity and Trin in the same story. I'm sorry if it's difficult to get used to, and I hope it doesn't take away too much from the story. If you find it just doesn't work, let me know, and I can change it back before I get too far in to the story. Thanks!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

After Trin, or Lena as she was now called, had finished eating, Trinity took her into her room to get some more sleep. She'd had a rough day and Trinity could tell how tired she was already.

"I'll wake you up in the morning," said Trinity.

"Alright," replied Lena. She got into the bed and Trinity sat down beside her, putting a hand to her cheek tenderly.

"If you need anything I'll just be in the room on the left," said Trinity kindly.

Lena smiled and nodded her head, "thanks."

Trinity got up and turned off the light on the wall. She walked out of the room, smiling at Lena before she left, and closed the heavy metal door.

She stood with her back leaning on the door for a few minutes, thinking about everything that had happened that day. She's been so scared when they couldn't find Lena, she'd almost lost her. Trinity realized how much she had to lose. It was hard with Neo, she'd almost lost him so many times, and now she had one more person to worry endlessly about.

She walked quietly along the walkway, heading to the core. It was late, but she wasn't tired as she'd just woken up not more than a few hours ago. She knew Neo would still be up too. She walked into the room to see Link and Neo in deep conversation about some computer program. Neo looked up when she walked over, disrupting Link's words.

"How is she?" he asked concerned.

"She's alright," replied Trinity sitting down beside them in an empty chair, "but it's going to take her a while to get used to all this. I can tell how lost she feels right now."

"Yeah," said Neo, "I keep thinking… what if we hadn't found her."

"I know," said Trinity, her eyes looking down at the steel flooring, "I don't know what I would have done."

All three of them remained silent a moment, considering the thought.

"Oh," said Trinity, "I almost forgot, she wanted to change her name. She asked me what I would have named her and I eventually decided on Lena."

"Lena," said Neo thoughtfully before smiling, "I like that."

Trinity smiled back, "I'm glad."

Morpheus walked in just then, grabbing their attention.

"Has Sphinx woken up yet?" he asked, holding a piece of broken equipment in his hands, attempting to fix it.

"No, not yet," replied Trinity. She had just remembered he was here, and felt grateful she hadn't had to encounter him yet.

"We should wake him," said Morpheus sitting down, "he needs to be counseled on what happened and what his duties will be."

"Well," began Trinity, faking a yawn, "I would volunteer, but I'm feeling quite tired."

Neo looked at her accusingly, knowing she was lying. Trinity just shrugged and got up to head to their bedroom. She really didn't think she could even try to sleep, but she would take any chance she could get to opt out of dealing with Sphinx.

Morpheus nodded as she got up to leave and looked to Neo, asking him silently.

"Yeah," said Neo sounding a little down, "I'll do it."

Morpheus smiled gratefully, "good, bring him in here."

Neo nodded and walked out, meeting up with trinity at the entrance to the walkway. He gave her a nasty glare, but also a small kiss on the cheek as he walked by, making Trinity laughed lightly, before following him down the hallway.

They walked past their own room and Neo stopped at Lena's room, opening the door as quietly as possible and looking inside. Trinity joined him, leaning against the doorway. Lena was sound asleep, breathing steadily. Neo leaned against the other side of the doorway and looked at Trinity, the door still open.

"She seems attached to you," he said slowly and quietly, as not to wake Lena.

Trinity knew what he was getting at. Lena had seemed to form a bond with Trinity, a small one still, but still a bond. Trinity could tell he was happy about this, but still feeling a little insecure about having yet to form a similar bond with her himself.

"Just give it time," responded Trinity kindly, "she'll come to trust you."

Neo grabbed Trinity's waist and pulled her into him, hugging her closely, breathing slowly into her neck. Trinity could sense fear in his body and she pulled back slightly to look at him.

"She…she just seemed so afraid… today… in the engine room," said Neo, his voice breaking slightly, "she looked at me… and she was so afraid."

Trinity had been surprised by Neo's emotion that day in the lab, and this continuation of emotion was no exception. Something about Lena really seemed to affect Neo in a way that Trinity had never seen.

"Neo," said Trinity firmly, "she looked at me that way too. She will learn to trust you. Just give it some time, and I promise she will."

Neo looked back at Lena again, a sad longing expression on his face. He seemed about to walk in, but then decided against it, closing the door slowly.

He looked at Trinity one last time before kissing her.

"I know you're not tired," he said playfully, "you liar."

Trinity smiled mischievously and kissed him once more before turning back to their room. She watched Neo give her a look of annoyance before turning and heading for Sphinx's room. He looked at the door for a moment before sighing painfully and opening it, slipping inside. Trinity smiled to herself and walked into their room, closing the door behind her.

Trinity opened her eyes, expecting it to be morning, but when she looked at the clock it only read four. She looked around the room, wondering what had woken her. She had managed to fall asleep finally around two. The room was quite dark and her eyes were still adjusting. She noticed the door was slightly ajar and heard small footsteps padding forward.

"Lena?" whispered Trinity, trying not to wake Neo sleeping soundly next to her.

"I couldn't sleep," replied a small voice, "it's so cold."

Trinity moved over as much as she could on the bed, which wasn't much, and motioned for Lena to come forward. She was so tiny that she easily fit in beside Trinity and moved in close as Trinity pulled the blanket around them both.

Lena wasn't lying. Her skin was like ice and Trinity hugged her tightly trying to warm her up. Trinity sighed deeply and fell back asleep within minutes, listening to Lena's steady heartbeat against her chest.

Trinity woke up this time to a pair of big brown eyes staring at her. She recognized them as Neo's eyes, but it was not Neo looking at her, but Lena.

"Good morning," said Trinity, extending a hand to her cheek, "do you feel a bit better today?"

Lena nodded. Trinity noticed that she wasn't talkative, even in her better moods. She reminded her of Neo that way. He didn't say much either, only what was necessary.

Trinity glanced behind her briefly, noticing Neo was lying beside her, still sleeping soundly. Trinity looked at the clock to see that it was only six in the morning. Trinity hadn't slept much, but she didn't feel tired as she sat up slowly.

She focused her attention back on Lena, who yawned beside her and looked quite sleepy still. Suddenly there was a soft knock at the door. Trinity got out of the bed slowly and opened it up to reveal Morpheus' face.

"Trinity," he said apologetically, "I'm sorry to wake you so early, but I need to talk to you about something. It's important."

"I was already up," replied trinity, "I'll meet you at the front in two minutes."

Morpheus nodded his thanks and trinity closed the door, turning back around. Lena was looking at her tiredly. Trinity walked over and picked up some clothes, turning back to face Lena.

"I have to get up now," she said, pulling on her pants, "but you can stay here for a while. You should sleep in while you have the chance."

Lena nodded and yawned once again before lying down. Trinity smiled at her and continued to get dressed. She took off her gown, and pulled on a sweater, looking around the room for her boots. She found them strewn in the corner and put them on as quietly as possible. She turned and walked to the door, looking back one last time before leaving.

Lena was sleeping next to Neo, nestled up against his back. Trinity felt the familiar rush of emotion. She knew Lena would warm up to him. She sighed happily, before exiting the room and shutting the door softly behind her.

Trinity walked down the cold quiet walkway, and into the pilot's room. Morpheus was sitting in a chair, looking ahead at the vast expanse of underground space. He didn't looked up when Trinity sat down beside him, but continued looking ahead, his stature insinuating he was in deep thought about something.

"What's on your mind?" asked Trinity curiously.

"It's Sphinx," replied Morpheus, giving away nothing more.

Trinity waited patiently for him to continue.

"We talked to him last night, but he's not being very… cooperative." Morpheus said the last word distinctly. Trinity knew what he meant. Sphinx was being a prick, as was his nature. Trinity had to say she wasn't the least bit surprised.

"I know that you had warned me that he was this way, but…" continued Morpheus, "I guess I just figured that when we explained it all to him, he would understand. I suppose I was wrong in that regard."

Trinity did not feel like she was in a position to gloat, even though she had been right. She said nothing, but followed Morpheus' eyes to watch outside the large window.

"We'll have to keep him with us for a while," said Morpheus, his tone even, "until he is ready to understand and cooperate."

Trinity felt her blood run cold. She had been so content only minutes before, and now it was all going to shit. She wanted Sphinx gone and quickly. She reasoned with herself though that this situation was about more than just her and her own discontent. She would be required to work with Sphinx and she would, without question or hesitation. She had to put her feelings aside and approach the situation as objectively as she could.

"Perhaps if he trains with us for a while… he'll come to accept his fate," suggested Trinity in a helpful tone.

"That's what I'm hoping," said Morpheus, still serious and fixated on a point in the distance.

"He reminds me a bit of…" Morpheus trailed off, his voice fading. Trinity knew exactly what he was thinking, what they were all thinking, what she had been thinking since she first met Sphinx.

"He has the remorse, the same… ungratefulness," continued Morpheus, "I'm not sure, maybe I made a mistake."

Trinity knew it was hard for Morpheus to admit when he was wrong. He felt so responsible, as if he'd failed everyone.

"No," said Trinity, hoping to convince him, "he's not like Cypher."

Trinity noticed that Morpheus cringed a little at the mention of the name.

"He's stubborn yes," she continued, "but he'll come around. He will learn his responsibility in time. I'm sure of it."

Morpheus looked over at Trinity for the first time since she'd come in, and gave her a small smile. She returned the gesture reassuringly. The truth was she wasn't sure that Sphinx would come around. She had been unsure about him from the beginning, however she knew that Morpheus needed her support.

"Thank you Trinity," said Morpheus kindly, "again, I'm sorry to have bothered you so early."

"Not at all," replied Trinity, getting up to leave. She turned around to look back at Morpheus before exiting the room.

"Are we going in today?" she asked.

Morpheus was silent for a moment before speaking.

"Yes…" he said making up his mind, "We should continue to search for our next target. Sphinx can go with you and Lena can stay behind with Link and I."

Trinity nodded before leaving, heading back to her room. She knew she had to suck up her hostility, but she was definitely not looking forward to dragging Sphinx along today.


	9. Chapter 9

Thanks again for the reviews and I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story. 

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix. 

* * *

Trinity reached the door to her room and opened it slowly, in case Neo and Lena were still asleep. Looking inside, Trinity saw that indeed both figures were still soundly sleeping. Neo had turned over and now had his arm around Lena. Trinity was content to just stand and watch them for a few moments, warmth spreading into her heart. 

Neo's voice suddenly broke Trinity's reverie. 

"I wondered where you had gone to so early," he said quietly, opening his eyes to look at her. 

"Morpheus just wanted to talk," she replied smiling. 

"About?" he asked. 

"Sphinx," replied Trinity, moving closer to sit on the edge of the bed slowly, "he's coming with us today." 

Neo sighed and sat up slowly, being careful not to disturb Lena beside him. Nevertheless, Lena stirred at the sudden loss of contact and blinked open her eyes, looking up at both of them. She had barely opened her eyes when an expression of excitement spread across her face, waking her up immediately. 

"Do I get to help today?" she asked, sitting up quickly and looking alert.

"Yes," replied Trinity, "you get to stay and help Link while we go into the matrix." 

"Cool," said Lena smirking, making Neo laugh. 

It seemed that already Lena felt like herself again and was comfortable in her new life. Trinity only wished that Sphinx could take a lesson from her. Thinking about Sphinx reminded Trinity that they should get up and ready to go. 

Lena was wearing her clothes already, so she got up and left with trinity while Neo stayed behind to change. Trinity closed the door behind them and headed for the kitchen, but not before a noise stopped her. She turned around to see Sphinx exiting his room. He caught sight of them and stopped, giving Trinity a nasty glare. Obviously he still held ill feelings towards her. 

"Good morning Sphinx," said Trinity cheerfully, suppressing her desire to glare back. 

Beside her, Lena moved over so she was behind Trinity, edging away from Sphinx. She could obviously sense his resentment too. When she did this, Sphinx's attention snapped towards Lena, who was looking up at him with apprehension. 

"I don't remember anyone mentioning you," he said. 

Trinity didn't like the tone he had taken when addressing Lena, it wasn't at all kind. 

"What's your name?" he asked roughly.

Lena swallowed nervously before mumbling, "…Tri-Lena." 

"Trilena?" asked Sphinx in a nasty mocking voice. 

"Lena," she repeated again more clearly.

Sphinx's expression was unreadable. He stood his ground, looking at Lena intently. Trinity began to feel very uneasy. 

"Well," she said, trying to break the tension that had reached an unbearable level, "let's go get breakfast." 

Lena walked behind her down the walkway, still looking at Sphinx hesitantly as he followed them. 

When they reached the kitchen, Link was eating alone at the table. He smiled broadly at Lena as she sat down next to him, scooting in close, edging away from Sphinx who had sat down opposite them. Trinity got three dishes and sat down beside Sphinx, putting a dish in front of Lena, Sphinx, and herself. 

Trinity noticed Sphinx was still staring at Lena, and Lena was trying her best to ignore his eyes. Trinity thought he was being rather creepy and even a bit scary. She was about to try to divert his attention when someone else did it for her. Neo walked into the kitchen and greeted them, getting himself some breakfast. Sphinx immediately looked down at his food and Trinity noticed he seemed rather nervous. She couldn't grasp his odd behavior. 

Neo sat down beside Trinity and smiled happily as he began to eat, unaware of the previous awkwardness that had encompassed the room. 

"So," said Link, initiating conversation with Lena, "are you ready to help me in the core today?" 

Lena nodded enthusiastically with her mouth full and Link laughed lightly. 

Sphinx took the opportunity to dampen the mood by scowling and making an angry noise in his throat. Trinity looked over at him menacingly, catching his eye. She tried to convey a message of warning. Messing with her was one thing, but messing with Lena was a whole other story. He paid her no attention, turning back immediately to his food and swallowing it with a grimace. Trinity rather hoped he might choke on it. 

They finished up in silence and Neo took all their plates to the sink. Trinity followed Link to the core, Lena following her close behind, and Sphinx trudging along in the back. Morpheus looked up when they entered. He had been watching the code intently, obviously waiting for them. He stood up to let Link take his place and motioned for Sphinx to get into a chair. 

"What are you doing?" asked Sphinx angrily as Morpheus sat him back into the chair. 

"You're going into the matrix today to help Neo and Trinity," said Morpheus firmly, an edge in his voice. 

"Why?" asked Sphinx still angry, but relaxing somewhat into the chair as Morpheus strapped him up. 

"Because I'm your captain and it's your duty," said Morpheus, a little more sternly, moving to insert the rod. 

Sphinx made another angry noise in his throat. Trinity was beginning to really hate that sound. She waited for Neo to join them and strapped him into a chair beside Sphinx. Lena was watching intently from a chair beside Link. 

"Is it dangerous?" asked Lena when Trinity got into a chair herself. 

"Not really," replied Morpheus in a kind voice, strapping Trinity in now, "a little like going into a dream." 

"But they could still get hurt right?" she asked, trying to grasp the idea. 

"We won't," said Trinity smiling back at her from the chair. 

"But you still could?" asked Lena anxiously. 

"Don't worry," replied Morpheus, this time smiling, "you and I will keep an eye on them."

Lena smiled back and relaxed in the chair, still watching with fascination as all three of them were inserted into the matrix, one at a time. 

Trinity opened her eyes to a different setting, one she didn't recognize. It was an open room in a very new building. She could tell because she could smell fresh paint and plaster. It was completely empty, with wide windows along one wall. A bright scene of blue sky lay out the window and she realized they must be high up in a new sky scraper. 

Trinity noticed Sphinx looking around nervously beside her and she waited until Neo appeared. 

Trinity's cell phone rang as usual and she picked it up to hear Link's voice, "no Lena, don't poke them, they can still feel it… " 

Trinity smiled and replied, "Link, we're in."

"Oh good," said Link responding to Trinity.

"Where exactly are we going?" asked Trinity. 

Link was silent a moment until he said, "head down to the twelfth floor and look for Stewart Foster's office, he's the guy you're looking for." 

"Alright thanks," replied Trinity before she hung up. 

Trinity pocketed the phone and turned to Sphinx who was looking miserable as ever. Didn't this guy ever smile? 

"Follow us and stay close," said Trinity, before walking out of the room and into an open hallway. She headed towards the elevator at the end of the hall and pressed the button, Neo beside her. The doors opened and the three stepped inside. Sphinx was slouched over in a corner, standing as far away from them as possible as if they were a deadly disease. 

When the elevator opened, they stepped out into a crowded business floor. Numerous people looked up at them curiously as they walked by, Trinity leading them towards the back along the row of office doors on the right. They stopped at a door labeled "Mr. Stewart Foster" and knocked twice, before opening the door swiftly. 

The room was vacant to Trinity's disappointment. Damn, now they'd have to go searching for the guy. She took out her phone and called Link again. It took a few rings for him to answer. 

"O-operator," he said distractedly. 

"Link?" asked Trinity, waiting for him to explain. 

"Sorry," he replied, "your girl was pressing buttons on your screen when Morpheus and I had our backs turned." 

Trinity sighed. Lena seemed to be quite the handful when she and Neo were not present. 

"Link, the guy isn't in his office," said Trinity, refocusing their conversation, "any idea where he could be?" 

Link was silent a few moments before saying, "sorry, I must have lost him when I was distracted. Hang tight for a moment." 

Trinity nodded and hung up the phone. She turned around to tell Neo and Sphinx the news when she noticed Sphinx was nowhere to be seen. God damn, the son of a bitch took off. Where the hell did he think he was going to go? His body was still firmly planted on the Neb. This guy was a real idiot. 

"Neo!" said Trinity urgently, causing him to turn from where he was admiring a picture on the desk, "where's Sphinx?" 

Neo glanced around the office quickly before muttering, "shit." 

Trinity sighed frustratingly, and abruptly ran out of the office. She looked down either side of the hallway and spotted Sphinx's retreating figure dash around the corner to the left, back towards the elevator. Trinity ran down the corridor after him, ignoring the looks of confused office workers. She didn't reach the elevator in time but noticed he was going up (which was odd), and promptly headed for the stairs, Neo right behind her now. 

She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and called Link again. 

"Trinity, I'm sorry I haven't found him yet, just hang tight," said Link. 

"No Link!" said Trinity quickly, "it's Sphinx, he took off. I'm after him now. Do you have any idea what floor he's on?" 

"Oh shit," said Link, "um… 35th floor. Jesus what the hell did he go up for? What's he thinking?" 

Trinity promptly hung up the phone and dashed up the stairs, taking two a time. If she weren't in the matrix, she would have been exhausted minutes ago. 

"He's on the 35th floor," Trinity yelled back to Neo, who was just a few steps behind her. She was going to kill Sphinx when she caught up to him. 

They reached the door with a '35' painted beside it and ran through it, looking around a deserted floor. The windows weren't on yet, and plastic sheets blew in the wind. It was a large open space with a few paint cans lying abandoned. Trinity looked around but didn't see Sphinx anywhere. 

Neo was standing beside her and she heard him whisper, "where the hell is he?" 

Trinity walked into the vast space slowly, alert for any sign of movement. There were a few stray boards and ladders, but no real place for a man to hide. Link must have got the wrong floor, or Sphinx had dashed away before they'd reached it. 

Trinity made to grab her phone once again when she saw a flicker of movement. It came from about twenty feet away. Neo was walking along the edge by the open windows, looking down uneasily and Sphinx was hiding behind a loose drywall sheet. He was only a few feet from Neo, and Trinity watched as he moved out to push Neo over the edge. 

"Neo!" cried Trinity, desperately hoping he'd turn around to see Sphinx. 

It was too late however, as Neo turned around just as Sphinx had roughly pushed him. Trinity watched in horror as Neo stumbled along the edge and lost his balance, falling and disappearing from view. 

"NO!" screamed Trinity, running in vain to the open window. She had almost reached it when Sphinx hit her square in the jaw, launching her backwards across the floor. She regained her composure and got to her feet quickly, Sphinx staring at her from across the room with a wicked expression. 

"Why didn't you just leave me alone?" he screamed at her angrily. 

Trinity was in no mood to reason with him, all she could feel was intense rage coursing through her body. She pulled out her gun and shot at him quickly. He had noticed her movements however, and dove away, the bullets barely missing him. He got up and headed for the stairs, trinity aiming desperately as he ran. She was normally a perfect shot, but her fear and anger were blinding her. She landed one bullet in his arm causing him to yell out but continue running. He vanished around the corner. Trinity was about to run after him when she remembered Neo and ran to look over the edge, praying he had manage to hang on and was still alive. She leaned over carefully and held her breath. She saw nothing but the blank side of the building, and the gray streets hundreds of feet below. She fell to her knees crying. 

"Neo!" she screamed desperately into the open sky, staring down at the cars driving past. She covered her hands with her face and for a moment considered launching herself over the edge as well. 

"Trinity!" she heard a familiar voice yell from across the floor. She looked behind her to see Neo standing at the stairs entrance, Sphinx unconscious at his feet. He must have fallen and caught onto the previous floor, then met Sphinx on the stairs coming back up. Trinity felt intense relief rush through her and she got up to run over to him, tears falling freely down her face. 

She ran into his arms, holding onto him tightly, her body shaking all over. 

"Oh God Neo," she said desperately, "I thought I'd lost you." 

"Never," he said, holding onto her tightly, trying to calm her down. 

Trinity pulled back to kiss him fiercely, reveling in the moment. She leaned her forehead against his, before turning her attention to Sphinx's body on the floor next to them. She wanted to kill him, to push him out the same window and watch him fall to his death. She gritted her teeth angrily and made to kick him when Neo stopped her. 

"No," he said, "we have to take him back. Morpheus can decide what to do with him then." 

Trinity knew he was right, but it did not deter her fierce anger. She sighed deeply to calm herself and said, "let's just go back then. I'm not really in the mood to stay." 

Neo picked up Sphinx's body and they continued into the elevator. 

Trinity's cell phone rang and she picked it up quickly, "Link?" 

"Hey, are you guys alright?" he asked concerned. 

"Yeah, we're alright," replied Trinity, "We need an exit now." 

"Go back to the twentieth floor. The phone's in the office in the back where you came in." 

"Thanks," said Trinity, hanging up the phone. She turned to Neo and hugged him tightly again, never wanting to let go. 

"Hey, I'm okay," he said soothingly. 

Trinity nodded and pulled back. Neo wiped a single tear from her cheek with his hand and smiled at her reassuringly. Sphinx stirred beside them from the floor. 

He made a groaning noise and moved to sit up, but not before Trinity and pulled out her gun and shoved it into his temple. 

"Make one move out of line and you're dead," she said in an icy tone. 

He looked up at her with intense hatred and slowly stood up, eyeing the gun warily. When the elevator doors opened, Trinity put the gun to his back and walked behind him towards the room, Neo leading. 

Neo picked up the ringing phone and handed it to Trinity, grabbing her gun that was placed on Sphinx. She picked it up and opened her eyes to the inside of the Neb. She abruptly shot up, barely waiting for Morpheus to unplug her before she darted over to Sphinx's chair. 

"Don't worry," said Link in a nasty tone, "he's not going anywhere." 

Trinity held onto Sphinx's body firmly while Morpheus unplugged him next. Sphinx opened his eyes and moved to sit up, only to be pushed back down forcibly by Trinity. He looked over at his blood stained shirt sleeve and glared at her angrily again, clenching his jaw. 

Morpheus moved over to unplug Neo next and Trinity noticed Lena was standing beside his chair, her hand on his. When Neo sat up, he was enveloped by Lena's tiny arms. He seemed shocked at first, but then relaxed and held onto her tightly. She must have known what was going on and feared as Trinity had that Neo had been killed.

Trinity's attention was diverted back to Sphinx as he pushed against her hands roughly, trying to take advantage of her distracted state. But it was to no avail, as Morpheus had also pinned him down in the chair before he could push Trinity away. 

"I hope you realize what you almost did," said Morpheus in a voice so angry Trinity didn't even recognize it. 

Sphinx glared back unnerved and spit, "I'm just sorry he didn't fall to his death." 

Trinity couldn't take it anymore, she had reached her limit. She pulled back her fist and punched him in the face as hard as she could. No one stopped her and she watched in satisfaction as Sphinx was thrown off the chair to the side and landed unconscious on the floor with a loud slam. 

Morpheus had stepped back when he fell and looked at Trinity with a light expression. 

"Well that wasn't the solution I was going to suggest, but I suppose it was one way to handle the situation." 

Neo and Link laughed behind him, while Lena looked down at Sphinx with a hard expression. She looked serious and angry like Trinity was. 

"What are you going to do with him?" asked Lena, looking up at Morpheus. 

"We'll lock him in his room," he answered staring down at Sphinx's limp body and taking on a much more serious tone, "until we can take him into Zion and they can deal with him." 

Lena moved over to wrap her arms tightly around Neo's waist, still looking down at Sphinx. Neo hugged her close and looked up at Trinity reassuringly. 

Trinity sighed deeply, looking at the bullet wound on Sphinx's arm. A part of her was glad she missed as she'd have regretted actually killing him, but at the same time she wanted her revenge. She hoped they'd reach Zion as soon as possible, before she was forced to finish him off. 


	10. Chapter 10

First of all, many thanks to those who read and reviewed! I really appreciate the compliments and critiques. There were a few things that were pointed out to me so I will attempt to address those issues now! 

Neo can fly. I did remember that Neo has special powers in the matrix, but I figured since he was caught off guard that his reflexes maybe wouldn't be as acute. I will emphasize also that he did not indeed fall to his death, but managed to get back onto the floor beneath him, which for a normal person might be rather difficult. I think I probably should have made this more clear so I apologize for that, and thank you KitsuneHi344 for pointing this out since perhaps other people were questioning this idea as well. 

When Sphinx was shot in the matrix he maintained the wound in the real world. Now as far as I know, your mind makes everything that happens in the matrix real so though there maybe wouldn't have been a bullet, he would still have a wound from being shot, just like poor Mouse in the first film (aw). If I am wrong, please feel free to correct me, but I'm pretty sure that this idea is corroborated with the films. 

Lastly, I appreciate the input on Lena's dynamics with Neo and Trinity. This is a little tricky to write because it's obviously a very complex situation and one in which I have little experience with. I'm trying to make it as real as possible, but I apologize if I don't delve into the issues too deeply. I want to make this fiction realistic but also lightly entertaining, so I'm trying not to make it too dramatic. 

I hope this helps a little to clear up any inquiries you had about the story. Thanks again for the reviews and I always always always appreciate the feedback. And finally, on to the main event! 

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix. 

* * *

Trinity woke to the sound of knocking. She looked at the clock to see that it was only seven in the morning. They usually didn't get up until at least seven thirty. Trinity figured Morpheus probably wanted to talk to her about going into Zion finally. It had been almost a week since the incident with Sphinx in the matrix. Morpheus had been putting off the trip so they could spend a week trying to get a hold of Stewart Foster. Apparently the guy was very important, but also happened to be very hard to track down. They had yet to find him even after several days of attempts. 

Trinity looked over at Neo beside her. She thought about making him get up instead, but didn't have the heart as he was still sound asleep. She sighed and pulled herself out of the small bed. She didn't bother to get changed but just walked over to the door and opened it just wide enough to see someone's face. It was Lena. She looked quite irked and impatient. 

"I've been up for hours," she said in a whining voice, "when are we going to get to Zeon?" 

"It's Zion," Trinity corrected her, "and you should still be asleep, it's only seven." 

Lena sighed heavily and crossed her arms. Trinity was annoyed by her stubbornness but also a little amused. She knew Lena came by in naturally as Neo often told Trinity how stubborn she could be herself. 

"Fine," said Trinity giving in, "go eat breakfast and I'll meet you there in a few minutes." 

Lena smiled happily and bounced towards the kitchen without another word. Trinity smiled at her retreating form and closed the door, turning back to the bed. Neo hadn't woken yet and was still lying on the back. Trinity walked over and crawled into the bed beside him, just wanting a few more minutes of uninterrupted rest. 

When Trinity opened her eyes again, Lena was glaring down at her angrily. Trinity realized she must have fallen back asleep, and moved to sit up quickly, feeling guilty for abandoning Lena in the kitchen. 

"Mom!" said Lena testily, waking Neo up beside her. He sat up so fast he almost hit his head on the light fixture on the wall. 

"What?" he said urgently, thinking the worst. 

Trinity suppressed a laugh and replied, "it's nothing, Lena's just extremely impatient to get going." 

Neo sighed and rubbed his head groggily, apparently not appreciating the startling wake up call. 

"I've already eaten breakfast!" continued Lena exasperatedly. 

"Alright, alright," said Trinity tiredly, getting up and reaching for her clothes and boots. She pulled them on quickly as Lena ran out of the room towards the core. 

"Sorry," Trinity said to Neo who was looking at her tiredly, "she's excited to see Zion." 

"Zion?" asked Neo, "we're not going until tomorrow. Morpheus decided to wait until we've found Foster. He figures Sphinx can hang out just a few more days." 

Trinity stood up from putting her boots on and groaned loudly. She wouldn't hear the end of it from Lena. She would be so disappointed. Not to mention Trinity also wanted Sphinx off the ship as soon as possible. It was obviously quite discomforting to be sleeping just one room over from a man who had viciously tried to kill Neo. 

"Well, you take your time getting up," said Trinity turning back to the open door, "I'll go tell her the unfortunate news." 

Trinity left the room and headed into the core where Lena was sitting ready at Link's chair. She turned when Trinity walked in and grinned broadly. 

"When are we going to leave? Can I help drive the ship? Is Link up yet?" Lena fired questions at such an alarming rate that Trinity was afraid she might have consumed some sort drug from the medical room. 

"Lena," began Trinity in a heavy voice, "we're not going today. We have to go into the matrix to try to locate our target before we can head back to Zion." 

Lena's face fell immediately. 

"But we've been doing that for the past week!" cried Lena angrily. 

"I know," said Trinity turning back around, "but we'll go to Zion soon." 

Trinity heard Lena moan disappointingly behind her and she felt rather sorry for her. Trinity knew Lena didn't mean to be demanding, she was just so excited. It was all so new to her. Trinity felt she needed to be more grateful at Lena's excitement. Lena had taken to all this surprisingly well. 

Trinity headed for the kitchen and opened the door wide when she reached it. Morpheus, Link and Neo all greeted her from the table, Neo just sitting down with his breakfast. He had gotten an extra dish for Trinity. She smiled gratefully and sat down beside him. 

Trinity looked up at Morpheus after a few minutes. 

"Are you sure we shouldn't go to Zion today to drop off Sphinx? He has been in there for a while now," she asked. 

She didn't really care if Sphinx died in his room, but she knew how disappointed Lena was about not going and wanted to help her cause. 

"I don't like him being here," replied Morpheus, "but it's crucial we find Foster and get him out as soon as possible. With Sphinx being so difficult, the council has requested another aide and Foster is the one they'll need. I wanted to get him out and ready before we go back so we have someone to give them that will be of some help." 

Trinity nodded and dropped the point. At least she'd tried. 

"How did she take it?" asked Neo, referring to Lena. 

"She's not happy," replied Trinity, "but she'll live." 

"I'll keep her entertained," added Link, "I have a few operating systems I wanted to try out on her." 

Trinity dropped her spoon and looked at Link in alarm. 

"What?" she asked, feeling her throat constrict painfully, "you can't plug her in!"

"Why not?" asked Link skeptically, "she won't be in any danger. I designed the programs myself." 

"No," said Trinity firmly, "I don't want her to." 

Link looked defeated and a bit aggravated. 

"C'mon Trin," said Neo in a coercing voice, "it might make her forget about not going to Zion." 

Trinity looked at him disbelievingly. She couldn't believe he would be alright with their daughter being plugged into a dangerous and unpredictable computer program. She could tell he had taken the role of the indulgent parent, which left her to be the overprotective one, much to her displeasure. She didn't want Lena to look at her that way, not yet. 

Trinity sighed deeply and said, "alright." 

Link make a small 'yippee' and Neo smiled back at her. 

"But Link," said Trinity, making him look up, "if she even gets so much as a scratch, I'll kill you." 

"Yes ma'am!" he replied in a mock scared tone, continuing to eat. 

Morpheus finished first and put his dish away exiting the room, Link following soon after. 

"I'll bring the asshole his food," said Trinity, getting up to put away her and Neo's dishes. Neo laughed and kissed her on the cheek before walking out to the front of the ship following Morpheus and Link. 

Trinity filled up a dish and walked out of the kitchen towards the rooms. She reached Sphinx's door and put her ear against it, wondering what he was doing. Sometimes he talked to himself, most likely out of loneliness and misery. The room was dead silent, and Trinity opened the door cautiously, looking inside. What she saw filled her with fear. The room was vacant but the vent near the ceiling was kicked in. How long had he been gone? They hadn't even though to cover it up before locking him inside. How could they be so stupid?

Trinity dropped the dish in shock and the gooey mess spilled out onto the floor. She ran out, slamming the door open in the process and immediately ran into the core to get Lena. She had a horrible feeling that Lena was in danger. Trinity sprinted down the walkway and looked around at the deserted core. She searched the room in vain, calling out for Lena in the process. 

"Lena!" she screamed looking up at the large vent above her head, "Lena!" 

Lena should have heard her and the fact that she wasn't responding was enough to terrify Trinity. If Sphinx had gotten to her there was no telling what he might do. The idea shook Trinity and she felt her body begin to give out in fear. She felt hysterical and overwhelmed. She took off running to the front of the ship, realizing it was pretty much soundproof. Perhaps Lena had headed there instead. 

Trinity's boots thudded along the walkway loudly as she bolted through the ship to the front. She opened the door quickly and looked around at the three surprised faces. 

"Lena?" breathed Trinity. 

"Not here," replied Link only looking mildly concerned. 

"Sphinx," said Trinity desperately, "he's gone too. He escaped through the vent." 

"Shit!" said Neo, running past Trinity back to the main deck. 

Link and Morpheus followed him and Trinity just stood, trying to calm herself down. She needed to think. She needed to focus. 

"Trinity!" bellowed Morpheus from the back of the ship, causing Trinity to turn. She regained her composure and ran to his voice. 

She ran into the core seeing the three men waiting for her arrival. 

"Trinity, I need you to go his room," said Morpheus in a calm but commanding voice, "you're small enough to fit through the vent. See if you can get through and find him. Neo and Link, you search the ship, while I turn off the heating system." 

Neo and Link ran off into separate directions and Trinity nodded as Morpheus strode away to the engine room. Trinity ran back down the walkway and went inside Sphinx's room, looking up at the vent. Sphinx had kicked off the cover and pulled up a desk to climb up into it. Trinity got up onto the desk herself and looked through the dark space. It was pitch black and stifling with heat. Trinity climbed up inside gingerly, feeling her breath being sucked away by the hot air. She felt claustrophobic instantly and didn't like the idea of feeling her way through the small constraining metal tube. 

Trinity edged her way along and felt the heat slowly dissipate out of the tube. Thank God. Morpheus must have shut off the heating already. She figured she had crawled about ten feet with she hit a divide. She felt with her hands a tube go off the right and one to the left. She took a chance and moved through to the left, trying to determine whereabouts she was in the ship. She figured she must be over the core and this was probably the way he had gone if he did take Lena. 

Trinity continued along, hoping she might actually reach somewhere worth crawling. Where could they possibly have gotten to? 

Trinity saw a dim light about another fifteen feet ahead and saw a place where the vent ended. She crawled towards it a little faster, as she felt her body start to cramp up from the constraining size. As she approached the light she saw that it led to the engine room as she recognized the heavy noise and steam wafting upwards. The vent was getting hot again, but Trinity realized it wasn't just from the approaching engine room. The heating system had been turned back on, and it felt as if it'd been turned back on to maximum as the heat was enveloping her, making it difficult to breathe. Trinity sped up to try to reach the opening. She was only a few feet away when she saw Sphinx's face meet hers. 

He looked at her with a wicked smile and laughed triumphantly. 

"I hope you like a little heat you filthy bitch," he spat at her before moving a large heavy metal door in front on the opening, encasing Trinity in complete darkness yet again, the heat building up around her. 

* * *

I hope you all liked this chapter. Once again, please review and let me know what you thought, as well as any suggestions you may have for future chapters. Thanks!


	11. Chapter 11

Thanks so much for the continued reviews! I especially appreciated the ones commending my originality. I often worry that my writing is too boring and cliché, so it really means a lot to me. Thank you! 

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix. 

* * *

Trinity realized she had two options and her time was running out. The heat was becoming suffocating, and she knew it wouldn't be long before she passed out which may eventually be fatal. She could either try to make it back to the other end of the vent which was unlikely seeing as how long it took her to crawl this far, or she could try to move the heavy metal object that was blocking her exit to the engine room. 

Trinity decided to go for the latter and moved to the blockage, pushing against the metal as hard as she could. It was incredibly heavy and wasn't budging. She began to panic as the heat made her efforts increasingly difficult. She began to feel dizzy. She gave one final push and surprisingly the metal shifted quite easily, and she fell out onto the floor of the engine room. 

She gasped deeply, breathing in the slightly cooler air of the engine room. She looked up to see Lena, standing above her looking terrified. She had moved what Trinity now saw was a large boiler that was blocking the exit. 

"Are you okay?" asked Lean, getting down on the ground next to Trinity who was still gulping for air and coughing. 

Trinity nodded and looked around quickly to see where Sphinx was. 

"I ran and hid when he chased me in here," said Lena desperately, fear making her voice shake, "he didn't find me but he knows I'm in here. He went out and I ran to help you. He'll come back any minute."

Trinity had gotten most of her breath back and she stood up to lead Lena back over to place where Lena had hidden the first night on the Neb. She motioned for her to get into the hole and bent down to look at her, "stay in here no matter what. I'll come back for you." 

Lena nodded and crouched down deeper into the hole, still looking terrified. Trinity stood back up, peeking around the corner cautiously. She looked down the walkway to the door leading back into the core. The room appeared empty and Trinity slowly walked along. 

The door suddenly swung open and Trinity dodged behind a corner, praying she was out of sight. She poked her head out to see Sphinx walking along slowly, glancing around the room. He hadn't seen her. He was carrying a large piece of a broke pipe in his hand. Trinity felt herself gasp silently when she noticed the blood splattered on the tip. Whose blood was it, Morpheus', Link's, or Neo's? Trinity swallowed deeply and tried to calm herself, knowing there was nothing she could do at the moment. 

"Little one!" called Sphinx in a falsely sincere voice. 

He was looking for Lena, and obviously hadn't remembered her name. Trinity watched him edge around the room, looking around him as he walked. The blood stained pipe was down at his side and Trinity could hear the sound of metal clangs as it hit against the steel wall. 

"Come out little one," he cooed, "I won't hurt you. I just want to play." 

He was now on the other side of the room and Trinity had a clear exit to the door out to the core. She needed to find Neo, Link, and Morpheus, but she didn't want to leave Lena. Sphinx got closer and closer to Lena's hiding place and Trinity hoped he'd overlook it, however, her fears intensified as he stopped and bent down to look inside the dark hole. 

Trinity knew she had no choice but to stay and protect Lena. She looked around her to try to find something to use as a weapon. She found a rusty piece of metal jutting out from one of the nearby steel grates on the floor and bent down slowly to rip it off. 

Sphinx was about to bend down to look when Trinity lunged at him with the piece of metal. She got him in the shoulder, slicing a huge gash across his back. He screamed in pain and threw Trinity off of him roughly, throwing her against a steaming boiler. She hit it hard and the piece of metal fell from her hand, clattering to the floor. She went to grab it but Sphinx swung the pipe and hit her across the jaw, the blood from the pipe smearing across her face as she fell once again. 

"I thought I got rid of you!" he screamed down at her, pure hatred in his eyes.

Trinity looked up at him from where she was on the floor, anger beating through her entire body. She used her anger to fuel her strength and lunged at him once again. He was too quick for her though as she hit her again with the pipe, this time on the side of her head, knocking her unconscious. 

When Trinity woke up, her head was throbbing, and her eyes were blurry as she looked around the room. She tried to move her arms, only to find she couldn't. She looked down as her vision slowly adjusted, to see that she had been tied up with computer cables, and was sitting up against the wall in the core. She looked around the room and saw Link lying a few feet away from her, unconscious on the floor. His head had a horrible gash on the temple and it was crusted with blood. Trinity guessed it was his blood that had been on Sphinx's pipe. 

Sphinx didn't appear to be anywhere in the room and Trinity quickly focused her thoughts on a method of escape. Her eyes searched the room but nothing useable seemed to be within capable reach. She breathed deeply, trying not to panic or think about where Morpheus, Neo, and Lena were and if they were hurt. 

She looked up when she heard the sound of heavy footsteps heading toward the core from the main deck. The steps were slow and pained, as if the person was hurt and she hoped it was Morpheus or Neo. Unfortunately, she waited eagerly only to see Sphinx's face come into view. He looked out of breath and was dragging something behind him. Trinity's heart stopped when she saw it was Neo, unconscious. 

Trinity felt something inside her snap and she began to scream irrationally at Sphinx from her place against the wall. She pushed against her constraints and thrashed angrily, feeling the tears of helpless fall down her face. 

"Shut up!" yelled Sphinx, still dragging Neo into the room and throwing him against Link. Trinity steadied herself, still breathing heavily, and looked to see where Neo was hurt. Like Link, he too had a gash on his temple that must have been from the same pipe. Trinity saw that Sphinx was indeed still carrying the same pipe as he threw it down on the floor loudly and walked over to Trinity, looking triumphant. 

"So much for 'the One' now," he said in a menacing voice, looking down at Trinity's angry face, "you should have seen the look on his face before I hit him." 

He made a look of mock shock and erupted into laughter. He'd obviously gone over the edge of psychotic. 

"You bastard," said Trinity, "I'll kill you!" 

She spoke in a dangerous tone but it didn't seem to phase Sphinx in the slightest as he just laughed harder. 

He stopped suddenly however, when a figure entered the room. It was Morpheus. He had a look of absolute hate and determination on his face, as he stood with his legs shoulder width apart, and his fist clenched, glaring at Sphinx from across the room. 

"Ah," said Sphinx in an amused voice, clearly not the least bit intimidated, "you were just the man I was going to look for next. Seeing as you found me, it makes my job a lot easier." 

Morpheus stood where he was, his fists shaking. He looked from Trinity, to Neo and Link on the floor, then back at Sphinx. 

"I freed you…" he said slowly, brimming with anger. 

"Did you ever think for a second," replied Sphinx, "that I didn't want to be freed?" 

He screamed the last part and that was enough to make Morpheus lunge at Sphinx and tackle him to the ground. Morpheus was strong but so was Sphinx. They had their hands at each other's throats and Trinity couldn't tell who was winning. She tried to wrestle herself free yet again when Sphinx managed to overpower Morpheus and pin him down against the floor instead. 

Trinity was struggling but her efforts were futile as the cables were wrapped around her so tightly they weren't budging. She looked over to see Morpheus' face getting more pained as Sphinx was choking him to death with insane anger. Trinity felt the helplessness of her situation weight down her efforts and she screamed with frustration. 

"Stop it! Morpheus, No!" 

Sphinx paid no attention however, as Morpheus' hold on him was fading and he began to get weaker under his deathly grip. 

Trinity turned her head when she saw the door to the engine room open slowly and cautiously. Lena poked her head through and made eye contact with Trinity, looking panicked upon seeing her tied up. 

"Lena," breathed Trinity, trying not to let Sphinx hear. 

Trinity panicked further as she realized two people she cared deeply about were at the mercy of a crazed lunatic. It was only a matter of time before Sphinx noticed Lena. 

This thought didn't seem to bother Lena however, as she opened the door wider and walked in, staring in horror at the scene before here. Trinity didn't even have time to yell at her to run back. Lena had run over to the pipe lying on the ground and picked it up with determination. 

Sphinx was facing away from the door and didn't notice Lena's presence behind him. Lena lifted the pipe high above her head, which was shaking in her tiny hands, and hurled it down on Sphinx's head, knocking him unconscious onto Morpheus. 

Lena stayed where she was, but dropped the pipe to the floor. It landed with a noisy clang that echoed in the now quiet room. Her whole body was shaking and she seemed to be in shock when she didn't move. 

Morpheus gasped for a minute before regaining himself and moving Sphinx off of him. He looked up at Lena, then over at Trinity. He seemed to remember the urgency of the situation as he ran over to untie Trinity, Lena still standing frozen. 

Trinity waited for Morpheus to loosen the cables, then helped him wriggle herself free. Her motherly instincts took over as she ran for Lena and held onto her. 

Morpheus immediately picked up Neo and carried him to the medical room, coming back to get Link right after. 

Trinity felt her own shock and distress dissipate slowly and she pulled back to look at Lena's face. 

"Are you alright?" she asked. 

Lena remained silent. Her face wore an expression of shock and tears were slowly falling down her face. 

"Trinity!" called Morpheus urgently, "I need your help!" 

Trinity remembered Neo and Link and let go of Lena to run to the medical room. Morpheus had placed Neo on one table and Link on the other. He was rummaging through the cupboards looking for supplies. 

"They both need to be treated for concussions and stitched up," said Morpheus, grabbing two trays full of supplies and handing one to Trinity. Trinity took it and walked over to Neo while Morpheus tended to Link. 

Lena walked into the room slowly and sat against the wall in the corner, watching them both work. 

They finished quickly and Morpheus helped Trinity finish off stitching up Neo's wound. Both Neo and Link were still unconscious, but their vitals were steady. 

Morpheus put down the needle and took off his gloves, setting them aside and leaning down over the table with exhaustion. 

"We need to do something about Sphinx," he said slowly without looking up, "we'll have to make sure he's secure this time." 

"He's dead," said a small voice from the corner of the room. 

They were the first words she'd spoken since she'd hit Sphinx.

"How do you know?" asked Trinity, shocked by Lena's confession. 

Lena swallowed deeply and looked down at her feet before she mumbled out, "I checked." 

Morpheus looked at Lena then at Trinity, before walking out of the room into the core. He returned a few moments later and walked over to Lena in the corner. He bent down and put his hand on her shoulder so she looked up at him, tears still in her eyes. 

"He decided his own fate," he began in a calm voice, "what you did… saved my life." 

Lena blinked a few times and wiped the remaining tears off her face. Morpheus pulled on Lena's hand and enveloped her in a hug for the first time. Lena seemed surprised but then hugged him back tentatively. She sobbed freely now, her shock lessening. She pulled back and looked at Morpheus. 

"Are they going to be okay?" she asked fearfully. 

"Yes," said Morpheus, looking back at Trinity too, "they'll be alright, I promise." 

Trinity looked away from them and stared down at Neo. She took his hand and felt herself break down, crying freely, allowing the seriousness of the situation to sink in. At the same time however, she felt a rush of relief run through her. Sphinx was dead. 

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For some reason this was a hard chapter for me to write. I wrote it and rewrote it more than a couple times. I hope it turned out decently enough. Let me know what you think again! Thanks!


	12. Chapter 12

Happy Easter everyone! Mmmm the season of delicious Mini Eggs!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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Trinity was sitting in the medical room. There were no chairs but she had pulled over a box of supplies and was sitting, staring at Neo, who was still unconscious on the medical table.

Link had woken up just a few hours before and Trinity had helped him get to his room to lie down. She had tried to get him to eat something but he'd insisted on just going right to bed.

It was about six in the evening and Morpheus was guiding the ship back to Zion. Sphinx was still lying in the core, a blanket pulled over his body. They had already sent word to Zion and told the council what had happened. They were going to drop off Sphinx's body and rest for a few days.

Trinity had taken Lena back into her and Neo's room at Lena's request. She was lying in the bed, her eyes open, tears still falling. Trinity knew it would take her a while to get over what had happened that day. She'd promised to come in and get her when Neo woke up.

Trinity had her head in her hand, her other hand firmly grasped on Neo's. Why wasn't he awake yet? How much longer would he be unconscious? Trinity let the flood of desperate questions run through her head as she tried to ignore the pounding headache she had.

Morpheus had caught sight of the huge gash on her temple after they had finished mending Link and Neo. He had insisted she let him clean it up despite her protests that she was fine. She'd cringed when Morpheus had said she needed stitches. She sat through them, trying desperately not to cry out as Lena had been watching her intently.

Trinity ran her fingers lightly over the stitches now, pulling back suddenly and hissing through her teeth when she hit the tender spot. She looked up at Neo's gash and did the same, only barely touching the deep cut. All three of them would probably have deep scars forever, a constant reminder of Sphinx.

Neo suddenly blinked open his eyes, staring up at the ceiling. Trinity pulled back her hand quickly and stood up to meet his eyes. He looked over at her and then closed his eyes again. Trinity was afraid that maybe he'd slipped back unconscious until he opened his eyes again and slowly tried to sit up. Trinity helped him until he was sitting on the edge of the table. He groaned and put a hand to his cut, pulling back and flinching when he touched it, looking at the dried blood on his fingers.

"How do you feel?" asked Trinity softly.

"Like hell," replied Neo before turning to look at her again, wiping his hand on his pants roughly, "how long was I out?"

"Just a few hours," replied Trinity, reaching over to pull out the IV from his hand gently.

He flinched again when she did this and she looked up at his face mumbling, "sorry."

"It's okay," he whispered, pulling Trinity into his arms.

She hugged him back, letting herself relax into his embrace.

"I love you so much," she said quietly into the hug.

"I love you too," he replied, pulling back to look into her eyes again, "where is he?"

It took Trinity a moment to realize he was referring to Sphinx.

"He's in the core," said Trinity, "he's dead."

"Dead?" asked Neo, looking at Trinity in disbelief, "how?"

"Lena," was all Trinity said.

She carried the tray with the needle in it over to the sink and threw the needle away in the medical waste box.

"Is she alright?" he asked concerned, watching Trinity on the other side of the room.

"I think so," replied Trinity, "she's in our room lying down. She's still pretty shaken up."

The Neb suddenly shook a little, forcing Trinity to grab onto the counter to steady herself. Neo looked around the room, as if trying to find the cause for the sudden jerk. Trinity guessed they'd docked in Zion already.

Link walked into the room, looking more alert than when he first woke up.

"We're here," he stated simply before smiling to Neo and leaving the room again.

Neo looked at Trinity questioningly.

"Zion," she said catching his look.

Neo seemed relieved as he jumped down from the table.

"Finally," he muttered, before turning to leave the room.

Apparently word hadn't yet spread that the Neb was returning. Trinity guessed that with the grave circumstances, Sphinx being dead, the council had been careful not to let their arrival become known. The docks were almost empty, probably because it was now almost seven in the evening, and only a few engineers were present, working on a ship.

The workers had run up to the door of the Neb when it opened to offer to help unload. They were completely taken aback when Morpheus and Link stepped out carrying Sphinx wrapped in a blanket stained with blood.

A member of the council had just arrived to welcome them back and speak with Morpheus. He walked up to the edge of the dock but stopped when he too caught sight of the body. Morpheus and Link laid Sphinx's body down just a few feet from the council member, who stepped back immediately.

"Um….ahem… Morpheus," he stuttered, "good to have you back. I asked a few men to come down and take care of the uh… body. They should be here any minute."

Morpheus nodded and looked to Link who had run back onto the ship to start unloading. Trinity had walked out after them and was waiting with her luggage for Neo to bring Lena out. The council man nodded a greeting and she smiled back politely, ignoring the body lying at her feet.

The engineers had hastily gone back to work, before their assistance could be asked for help with the body. They kept looking over wearily and muttering things back and forth between them.

A moment later two large men in white coats appeared and nodded to Morpheus before proceeding to pick up Sphinx and carry him out of sight. The council man seemed to ease up after they did this, obviously feeling relieved to have the body out of sight.

"Morpheus," he said, grabbing Morpheus' attention away from the men carrying Sphinx away, "I realize you and your crew will need a few days to… recuperate… after the events of today. However, I am to ask when you plan on departing again to acquire Mr. Foster, as he is of vital important to our research team."

Morpheus sighed and looked back out at the distance before turning to Trinity.

"Three days time," he said, his eyes locked with Trinity's.

She nodded and turned to the council man who was also nodding.

"Very well, I shall notify the council immediately," he replied, "thank you for your time. If there's anything you need, don't hesitate to contact us."

"Thank you," replied Morpheus quickly before turning to walk back on to the ship.

Trinity watched the council member leave. She turned her attention back to the Neb and smiled when she saw Neo appear in the doorway. He had Lena sleeping in his arms, a bag slung around his shoulder. He walked down the ramp and over to Trinity, leaning over so she could grab the bag.

Trinity put a hand to Lena's cold cheek and felt the dampness of tears. She wiped away the few smudges of grease on her face and arms. Trinity looked over to see the engineers had dropped their tools and were staring at them with fascination. Trinity blocked their view of Lena and motioned for Neo to follow her as they walked back to the living quarters.

It wasn't far and when they arrived Trinity opened up the door to the familiar area that they stayed at whenever they were in Zion. It wasn't much, just a one room cave with a small attached bathroom, but it was still one of the nicest quarters in all of Zion.

Trinity had to admit that was one nice thing about being with someone famous, getting the royal treatment all the time. Neo was still very much hailed as a savior and hero to most of Zion. Being members of the crew of the Neb, they were all very much valued by the members of council as well.

Trinity closed the door behind them and set down the bags on the floor. Neo walked over to the bed and waited for Trinity to come over and pull down the covers so he could set Lena down. There was only one bed, but it was easily large enough for the three of them.

Lena stirred when Neo set her down gently, but she just rolled over on her side facing away from them as Trinity pulled the covers over her. Trinity noticed her hair was beginning to grow in. A few centimeters of thick black hair were coming through, making her look less sickly.

"It's nice to be back," said Neo, putting an arm around Trinity.

"Yeah, it is," she said, leaning her head on his shoulder.

As much as Trinity loved being on the Neb, she always appreciated a few days on solid ground.

"We should show her around tomorrow," suggested Neo, looking down at Lena who was sleeping soundly again.

"Yeah," replied Trinity, "I bet she'd like that."

Trinity woke up when she felt something warm on her neck. She reached her hand up to feel Neo's face. He was planting small kisses across her jaw and under her ear, making her sigh happily.

"Good morning," he whispered into her ear making her smile.

"Good morning," she whispered back.

She was about to lean in to kiss him when a scream startled her and she almost fell right out of the bed.

"DADDY!" yelled Lena jumping on top of Neo.

He made a strained sound as she collapsed on his chest, her tiny body snuggled again him in a tight embrace.

"I'm so glad you're okay! Is Link okay too? Where's Morpheus? This isn't the ship! Where are we?!"

Lena was so excited she jumped out of bed with one huge leap, looking around with a huge grin on her face.

"Shh!" exclaimed Trinity roughly, "you'll wake up everyone in the city."

Lena stopped talking but her eyes grew wide as she mouthed the word, 'city.'

Neo laughed and moved away from Trinity, still clutching his chest where Lena had jumped on him.

Lena looked down and picked at her clothes with a disgusted look on her face. They were covered in grease and splatters of blood.

"Can I have some new clothes?" she asked, looking at Trinity as Neo got up and headed for the bathroom.

Trinity smiled at Lena before stretching out her arms and slowly climbing out of bed. She walked over to a cabinet and pulled open a drawer. Trinity rifled through the clothing trying to find something that might fit Lena. She was about five inches shorter than Trinity still and quite a bit skinnier. Trinity eventually pulled out an old dress she had that had always been a bit too small for her. It was a soft silky black material. The dress was quite elegant and probably not entirely appropriate for Lena to wear just around the city but it was the only thing that wasn't at least three sizes too big. Lena looked at it with admiration.

"I've never worn anything that nice before," she said, running her hand over the dress carefully.

Trinity smiled at her reassuringly and said, "you can have a shower before you try it on."

Lena smiled brightly at the mention of a shower and took the dress from Trinity to go over and sit on the bed, waiting for Neo to finish in the bathroom.

Trinity had showered on the Neb before they left and so she pulled out a few articles of clothing and got changed.

The bathroom door opened moments later and Neo walked out with only a towel around his waist. Trinity smiled but Lena looked quite taken aback.

"What?" he exclaimed when he stopped and noticed her face.

"Nothing," smiled Lena before dashing past him into the bathroom, dress in hand, closing the door quickly.

Neo looked at Trinity questioningly but she just laughed as he walked over to wrap his arms around her from behind and kissed her neck.

"I have to say a part of me misses the privacy we used to have," he said into her neck.

Trinity turned around with an eyebrow raised.

"This coming from the one who _insisted_ we unplug her as soon as possible!" joked Trinity.

Neo laughed and kissed her again.

"Alright, you got me there," he replied affectionately.

He walked over to the dresser and pulled out some clothes before getting changed himself. Trinity brushed out her hair that was almost down to her shoulders. She'd have to remember to cut it again before they left. She unpacked their things while they waited for Lena.

About ten minutes later the bathroom door opened and Lena walked out wearing the black dress. Trinity and Neo both looked over. The dress fit quite well. It was a little too big, but it still looked a lot better than the previous clothes she'd had on. It was sleeveless and flowed to her knees. She looked her age again, maybe even a few years older. She walked forward looking down at herself, smoothing out the dress nervously.

"Does it look alright?" she asked, blushing self-consciously at Trinity.

"It looks wonderful," replied Trinity, smiling at her warmly.

Lena seemed reassured and returned the smile before looking over at Neo who was looking back at her with shock in his eyes.

"You look just like Trinity," he said slowly, swallowing deeply.

"It is her dress," replied Lena nonchalantly.

"No," said Neo quickly, "it's not just the dress… I can really see it."

Trinity looked at Lena speculatively, trying to see what Neo was seeing. Lena might look more like her once her hair grew in more. Right now all Trinity could see was Neo, with the shaved head after they first released him. Lena looked down at herself once more before shrugging. Neo still looked shocked but he shook his head lightly and looked at Trinity.

"Alright," he said in an upbeat voice, "let's go."

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Hope you liked it! Please review and let me know!


	13. Chapter 13

I hope everyone had a great Easter and got lots of mini-eggs! Thanks so much for your reviews, they're always greatly appreciated!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

Trinity watched Lena carefully as they walked down the streets of Zion. Lena seemed fascinated by the sights but also very anxious as people were definitely not holding back their stares. Trinity was sure that they all knew who she was. Word traveled fast in Zion, even with something that was supposed to be "handled delicately," in the words of the council. Obviously a member had let the word leak out. All around people were muttering and pointing and Trinity felt rather sorry for Lena. Lena was trying not to look people in the eye as she walked along side Trinity nervously.

"Am I really that much of a spectacle? I'm just a normal person," whispered Lena.

Trinity looked down at her and squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"They'll get used to you soon," she replied.

"You should have seen the first time I arrived in Zion," said Neo, who was walking on the other side of Lena, "people practically got down on their knees and worshipped me."

"And it didn't go to your head at all did it?" Trinity asked Neo in a sarcastic voice before laughing.

Neo just shot her a menacing look before laughing himself.

"Where are we going?" asked Lena, grabbing their attention.

A small crowd of people had slowly begun to follow them and Trinity noticed how uneasy Lena was, looking back at them nervously.

"A few people want to meet you," replied Neo, also looking back at the crowd apprehensively.

"You don't say?" said Lena sarcastically.

Neo looked at her for a moment before smiling.

"What?" asked Lena curiously, looking up at Neo.

"You sound just like Trinity," he said, making Trinity turn her attention away from an old woman who was getting a little too close for comfort.

Trinity looked down at Lena before meeting Neo's eye with a small smile. She pretended the remark didn't faze her, but the truth was she felt rather unnerved. Neo had always been so calm and collected. Trinity was hoping Lena would take after him. The last thing she wanted to have to deal with was someone as volatile, stubborn, and aggressive as she was.

"You didn't really answer my question. _Where_ are we going?" asked Lena again, more impatiently this time.

Trinity thought of that young girl they had met in the matrix, standing alone in the market, so timid and afraid. Lena had done almost a complete one-eighty in the short time she'd been unplugged. Trinity wondered if the change was due to shock and upheaval or due to a new found comfort and security. Her thoughts were interrupted however, as they had stopped in front of a large building.

"Come on," said Neo, grabbing Lena's hand and pulling her up the stairs, Trinity right behind them.

The crowd behind them slowly dispersed as they walked through the heavy steel doors and inside to a wide room. About a dozen council members were seated around a large table and they all stood up when the three walked in.

Neo stood right behind Lena, his hands on her shoulders protectively. She looked afraid again, unsure of what was about to happen and just who these people were. There was one friendly face to her however, as Morpheus was standing between two men on the right side of the room. Trinity noticed his gentle smile when Lena looked over at him.

An older man of about fifty approached Lena first and extended his hand for her to shake.

"Hello, my name is Reubeus. I'm the leader of the Zion council."

Lena took his hand gingerly and mumbled out, "I'm Lena."

Trinity noticed Lena's same wariness that resembled her former self in the matrix that day they met her. Trinity guessed that indeed Lena's meekness was only her anxiety and the boldness she took on around Neo and Trinity was a sign of her raised comfort level. Trinity felt a sense of pride in this thought. Lena felt comfortable enough with them to be herself.

"It's an honor to meet you dear," replied Reubeus, "we've anticipated meeting you for some time now."

Lena smiled timidly and looked around once again at the men scattered in the room. They all wore the same identical expressions of welcome, but also a hint of curiosity. Trinity felt a little uneasy herself as she felt a majority of the members were looking at Lena in a way one might inspect a newly discovered species or scientific artifact.

Reubeus then stood up and looked past Lena and into Neo's eyes. His friendly tone changed completely and he took on a demeanor of serious authority.

"We need to run a few tests on her," he said quietly, as if Lena may not hear, "we have some specialists who would like to find out a few things."

Though Trinity had met Reubeus and had lengthy discussions with him on several occasions, she did not recognize this side of him. His tone was almost threatening.

"Like what?" asked Neo skeptically, moving his arms closer around Lena.

Lena was looking up at Reubeus with the same uneasiness Trinity saw her show in Sphinx's presence.

"It is vitally important that she come with us. Our specialists are trained to detect any… impurities or problems."

Trinity felt her defenses go up. Impurities or problems? He wasn't making any sense. She was a young girl, not a chemical sample.

"I don't understand," said Trinity, before Neo could respond, "what are you talking about, problems?"

A few of the council members began to shift uneasily from their standing positions. Others sat down, perhaps in sign that they did not want to have a part in this situation. Morpheus remained standing, looking suspiciously at Reubeus. Reubeus was about to answer Trinity when Morpheus spoke up.

"Reubeus, I thought we had decided this wasn't necessary."

Reubeus turned back to Morpheus quickly.

"Yes, well... I just thought a few tests could be done, preliminary ones perhaps."

Reubeus turned back to face them, obviously discomforted by Morpheus' inquisition.

Trinity was now thoroughly confused and a little aggravated. What had the council been discussing behind their back?

"What are you talking about?" asked Neo, his tone mirroring Trinity's confusion and fears.

"Please, we have doctors on hand waiting," said Reubeus grabbing Lena by the shoulders and grabbing her unexpectedly away from Neo's grasp, "you can come by and get her tomorrow."

Lena did not react well to this news and immediately broke out into a state of shock and hysteria.

"No! I don't want to go! Please, No!" she yelled, trying to break free of Reubeus grasp.

Neo reacted quickly and grabbed her shoulders again. Reubeus held on firm however and refused to let go, despite Lena's thrashing.

"Come now dear!" said Reubeus firmly, "you can return home to your parents after we're done."

"No," said Neo angrily, "you can't take her, she's terrified."

Neo was struggling to grab a hold of Lena and pull her back without hurting her in the process. Trinity took the opportunity to step forward threateningly, looking deep into Reubeus' eyes, trying to signal to him that he should back off.

"She's staying with us," she said in a tone as equally dangerous as Reubeus had used earlier.

Reubeus paused for a moment before letting go reluctantly and Lena settled back against Neo again, hiding behind his arms.

"This is not a debate. I feel it is in her best interest to come with us," said Reubeus looking from Neo to Trinity.

"No," repeated Neo and Trinity in unison.

Reubeus motioned with his hand and two council men came forward, standing just behind him.

"If you refuse to offer her willingly," he said arrogantly, "you leave us no choice but to take her by force."

Trinity felt fear run up her spine. This wasn't the matrix and they couldn't fight back if they were outnumbered. Trinity knew that if it came to that though, she wouldn't give Lena up without a fight. Who knows what kinds of tests and experiments they were planning on doing to her. Trinity's fears abated however as she heard a familiar voice come to their aide.

"I will not allow this," said Morpheus in a low voice, "we are a peaceful democracy, not a dictatorship who takes citizens hostage. You cannot take her if she is not willing."

Reubeus did not turn around when Morpheus spoke, but remained where he was, glaring at Neo. He sighed angrily before motioning for the two men behind him to sit down again. Trinity relaxed and sighed inwardly with relief.

"I am disappointed that you are so unwilling to help us," said Reubeus in a forbidding voice, glancing down at Lena.

"I'm disappointed that the leader of our council has so blatantly tried to traumatize a young child," said Trinity, feeling anger rise up in her throat.

Reubeus looked at her with an icy stare and Trinity felt her own blood run cold. She could feel the tension in the room as the other members were trying to make sense of the situation. Morpheus sat down with the other remaining members.

"Reubeus," he said calmly but sternly, "we have matters to discuss yet. Let them leave now."

Reubeus reluctantly turned back and sat down at the head of the table, not even having the courtesy to bid them goodbye. Trinity couldn't believe what had almost happened. She had no idea the council was so determinedly self-serving. Why had they not stood up for them as Morpheus had? She'd have to remember to thank Morpheus later for helping them out of a potentially horrific conflict.

Trinity turned to look at Neo who was comforting Lena in his arms. She had tears now falling silently down her face, and was burying her face in his chest in fear and embarrassment. Trinity realized how afraid she must have been, being in a strange new world and being almost ripped away from the only attachments she created. She was in a state of shock again. Neo obviously felt as angry she did as he looked up one last time at the back of Reubeus with pure hatred in his eyes.

"Let's go," he said, looking at Trinity quickly before walking back out the doors.

Once they had walked a ways back down the street, Neo stopped at an empty corner and bent down in front of Lena, who had become permanently attached to his side. He held on to her shoulders firmly and looked her in the eyes with sincerity.

"I'm sorry," he said, his voice soft and pained, "I had no idea they wanted to take you away. I'll never let them, ever, I promise."

Lena nodded and hugged Neo tightly, tears still in her eyes. Trinity walked up and placed a hand lovingly on her back, comforting her. Neo had said exactly what she had planned to say so she was content to just offer her comfort this way. Poor Lena had had such a terrible experience of the real world so far. First there was the horrible incident with Sphinx on the Neb, and now the trauma of almost being forced away to be tested on like a guinea pig.

"I'm not so sure I like Zion," said Lena sadly from Neo's shoulder.

Neo looked up at Trinity with a pained expression on his face. Trinity could tell how much he cared about Lena. She could see the deep affection translated into his body movements as he rubbed Lena's shoulders just like he did for Trinity when she was upset.

"Let's go home," said Trinity gently.

Lena paused in her sobs to reply quietly, "okay."

Lena pulled back from Neo as he stood up. She turned around and took Trinity's hand as they began to walk back.

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I hope you liked it. If you've read this far, I sure hope you'll leave me a review!


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

There was a loud knocking on the door what woke Trinity from her peaceful sleep. It had been a while since she had gotten a full night's sleep and she wasn't too happy about being woken up early. The knocking came again, this time sounding more urgent. Trinity looked over at Neo who was beside her, his arms draped around her middle, sleeping soundly still. Lena was on the other side of her, with Trinity wedged comfortably between the two. She wasn't exactly sure how she was supposed to get out of the bed without knocking one of them out. They both must have been tired as well since neither had even so much as stirred at the sound of the knocking.

Trinity managed to shimmy down the bed, bending her legs uncomfortably to get off as quietly as possible. She didn't want to disturb either Neo or Lena as they both could use the sleep as well.

Trinity walked over and just as the person began to knock again, she opened the door slowly. Peering out carefully, since the mob had taken to waiting outside the door for some part of the last evening, Trinity's eyes fell upon Link. He beamed when he saw Trinity.

"Hey there! Good morning! I didn't wake you did I?" he asked with an animated voice.

Trinity only yawned in response making Link frown.

"Sorry," he said sounding sincere, "I was wondering if Lena wanted to help me out today."

Trinity narrowed her eyes at Link, suspecting more to the story. If Link genuinely needed help he certainly wouldn't ask an inexperienced fourteen year old girl. Link seemed to pick up on her skepticism and launched into a reluctant explanation.

"You see…" he began, choosing his words carefully, "I promised her I'd let her try out this new program and I just finished it. I could really use her help to work out the kinks."

Trinity was about to tell him to turn right around and leave when she saw Lena's face in her mind. She would be so excited to work with Link again. Trinity also got the feeling Link liked having Lena around. He and Zee had never been able to have children and it only seemed natural that he would form a bond with Lena so quickly.

"I'll send her over to your place when she wakes up," replied Trinity with a small smile.

Link seemed to be anticipating a different answer and he looked at her surprised and ecstatic.

"Thanks Trin, I really appreciate it!" he said, using her nickname which made Trinity smile again, before closing the heavy steel door as lightly as she could.

She turned around and looked over at the digital clock on the dresser. It was almost nine in the morning, hours later than they usually slept on the Neb.

She decided they should probably get up, lest they mess up their sleeping patterns for when they boarded again the next day.

Walking over, Trinity gently nudged Lena. Lena breathed heavily and stretched out her arms, blinking open her eyes groggily. She looked up at Trinity who smiled down at her.

"I have a surprise for you," whispered Trinity, sitting down on the edge of the bed. Lena opened her eyes a little wider, sitting up slightly, clearly intrigued.

"Link just came by. He said he finished the new program and he wants you to help him out. I said you'd go over later."

Trinity barely had time to finish speaking when Lena bolted out of bed, ran past Trinity, and into the bathroom, slamming the door. She opened it quickly to pop her head out and say loudly, "I'll be ready in exactly one minute!" before slamming it shut again.

Trinity rolled her eyes, turning back to Neo who had been woken up from Lena slamming the door and yelling.

He groaned as he turned over to face Trinity and looked to the bathroom door.

"What is it now?" he asked, pretending to be annoyed.

Trinity knew that his annoyance these days, like hers, was usually only in joking. They were both so happy to have Lena with them. It was like finding a part of them that had been missing all those years.

"Lena's going over to work with Link today," said Trinity, getting up to grab some clothes for Lena.

Trinity had washed her clothes from the Neb and had folded them on top of the dresser. They were a little too big, but Trinity had managed to stitch them up the night before so they fit Lena a little more snugly.

"Oh?" asked Neo, sounding pleasantly surprised, "so it'll just be me and you then?"

Trinity stopped what she was doing to turn around and look at Neo, a smile playing on his lips as he looked up at her from the bed. Trinity hadn't thought about that aspect. It had been a couple days since they had the privacy to be together. Trinity felt a jolt of electricity and thrill run up her spine as she thought about them having the day to spend together here in bed.

"I guess so," replied Trinity, slowly walking over to the bed and lying down beside Neo, curling up against him. She sighed as he put a hand to her cheek and kissed her deeply. She was just getting into the kiss when the bathroom door opened and Trinity could hear Lena clearing her throat loudly.

"Jeez, at least wait until I leave!" she said in exasperation with her arms crossed, before changing the subject, "where did you put my clothes?"

Trinity turned back to Neo and kissed him once more before getting up out of the bed and heading over to the dresser. She picked up the pile of clothes and handed them to Lena.

"Thanks Mom," replied Lena before disappearing in the bathroom once more.

Trinity stood where she was, smiling to herself. It felt so nice to be referred to as 'mom.' Trinity had never realized how much she would love being a mother. She only hoped the good feeling would last and that Lena wouldn't become too much trouble. Unfortunately, Trinity could foresee Lena's slow ascension to becoming more strong willed and adventurous every day.

Neo had gotten up and was about to pull on some clothes when Trinity stopped him.

"What are you doing?" she asked playfully from across the room, "I'll just have to take them off again."

Neo smiled and put the shirt back into the drawer, wearing only the thin pair of pants that he slept in.

Lena came out of the bathroom once more, wearing her old clothes that were now more tightly fitting on her slim body. They consisted of a pair of thin black pants and a faded light blue sweater. She held out her arms and looked at Trinity smiling.

"They fit now!" she exclaimed happily.

"They look much better," replied Trinity, walking up to hug her tightly.

She kissed Lena's forehead before she pulled away and looked down at her.

"Are you ready to go now?"

Lena nodded her head and made for the doorway, stopping to hug Neo quickly.

"Bye Dad," she called behind her as she opened the door and walked out.

"Bye Lena," said Neo softly, smiling at the open door.

Trinity walked by him and grabbed his hand, squeezing it gently. He kissed her on the lips, pulling her in with his hand around her waist.

"Let's go!" yelled Lena from the outside the door.

Neo pulled back and smiled into Trinity's lips.

"She sure does take after you," he said, before dodging Trinity's punch into his shoulder.

Trinity walked out into the hallway and closed the door behind her. She looked over to see Lena already heading out of the building about thirty feet away. God, that girl was impatient.

"Lena, wait," said Trinity in mild irritation as she jogged to catch up to her.

They walked out into the cool air of Zion and down the stairs, people looking up at they went by. Trinity was worried Lena would become uncomfortable again but she seemed to be alright. Perhaps she'd already gotten used to it as had Neo and Trinity. Lena just smiled lightly as they walked along, completely ignoring the continued stares and whispers.

Trinity led them down just a two minute walk to another unit of living quarters. They weren't quite as nice as the ones Trinity and Neo were in, but they were the closest thing. Link and Zee had managed to move in after the war.

They walked up to the door and Trinity let Lena knock as she had already moved to do so. She stopped her however after about twelve powerful knocks, pushing her hand down swiftly but not hard.

"Was that really necessary?" asked Trinity in scorn.

Lena just smiled up at her and giggled mischievously.

Zee answered the door and smiled at Trinity before looking over at Lena warmly.

"You must be Lena," she said kindly, "it's nice to meet you. I'm Zee. Please come in."

She moved so they could both enter and Lena noticed Link standing about five feet away, smiling at Lena.

"You made it!" he said happily.

Lena nodded enthusiastically before looking back at Zee.

"It's nice to meet you too," she replied politely.

Trinity smiled. It was nice to know Lena was at least polite with others, even if she was a little demanding and meddlesome with her and Neo.

"You look just like your mother," said Zee with a voice of quiet reflection.

Trinity felt a small blush creep onto her cheeks with the mention, though also a bit of pride.

"That's what I hear," replied Lena, clearly not moved by the sentiment. She was looking around the apartment now with interest.

"I don't see any computer equipment," she said, narrowing her eyes speculatively.

"We'll have to go over to the Neb where it's docked. It's all on there," replied Link right away, as if expecting this question.

"I sure hope you don't mind. You really don't need to worry about keeping her busy," said Trinity, looking more at Zee than at Link.

"It's alright," replied Zee, "Link and I had the day to ourselves yesterday. I don't worry so much when he's gone anymore. I also know he hates being cooped up her all day. It was actually my idea for the two of them to work together today."

"Oh," said Trinity, genuinely but pleasantly surprised, "alright. Thank you. I know Lena appreciates it, don't you Lena?"

"Oh, of course," said Lena as Trinity looked down at her expectantly, "thank you."

"I'll walk her home later," said Link, walking past Trinity and opening the door for Lena to follow.

"Alright, bye you two," said Trinity as her and Zee watched them leave.

"Would you like something to drink?" asked Zee.

Trinity knew Neo would be waiting for her but she didn't want to seem rude so she politely accepted, walking over to sit down at their small table.

"Link told me about what happened on the Neb… about Sphinx," began Zee in a quiet fearful voice, "Lena seems alright though."

"Yes," replied Trinity, taking the drink Zee handed her, "I think she'll be fine."

"It must be a little scary," said Zee, sitting down across from Trinity, glass in hand, "becoming a mother overnight like that."

Trinity noticed the hint of sadness in Zee's voice. She felt guilty all of a sudden. Here Zee had wanted children for so many years, and Trinity had one handed to her unexpectedly. More than that, perhaps watching her husband go off with another woman's daughter might be more difficult that Trinity had imagined. Poor Zee, it seemed so unfair. Trinity decided to choose her words carefully as she answered so as not to seem ungrateful.

"Yes, it was," replied Trinity slowly, "but I've grown attached to her so quickly. I couldn't imagine not having her in my life again. I always thought Neo and I were not the parenting type, but… I guess I was wrong."

Zee smiled at her from across the table, and Trinity's uneasiness faded. Zee was strong and she had forgotten just how much pain Zee had endured with the war and losing Tank and Dozer.

"I think Link has grown attached to her as well," said Zee warmly, "I'm glad he has the opportunity to bond with her."

"Me too," replied Trinity, "it's good for Lena as well to have someone else there who cares as much as he does."

Zee smiled again and finished her drink. Trinity suddenly remembered Neo waiting for her.

"Zee, I'm sorry I really should go. Neo's waiting for me," said Trinity, genuinely sorry to have to leave, "thank you for the drink."

"Anytime," said Zee, standing up to show Trinity out, "Lena too. She's always welcome here."

"Thank you," replied Trinity, exiting the open door, "bye Zee."

"Goodbye Trinity," said Zee kindly before closing the door.

Trinity sighed deeply as she walked back to their home. She felt the familiar tingles in her body as she thought about being with Neo. Even after all these years he still had the same effect on her.

* * *

This chapter was a little slow plot wise, but it'll get exciting again soon I promise!


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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They were already boarding the Neb again. Three days seemed to pass by in an instant as Trinity walked up the creaky ramp, Lena and Neo in front of her. Lena had packed a few things with her, things her and Neo had bought her in the Zion market, a toothbrush, some new fitted pants, a red sweater, and a warm blanket as she often complained how cold the Neb was.

After they put their things away and finished loading up, Morpheus piloted them up towards the surface again for their usual routine of checking the atmosphere. Trinity went to the core to sit down by Link, looking over his shoulder at the program he was working on.

"How's it going?" asked Trinity kindly.

It had been a while since her and Link had some time to talk. The two had become very close after the war and with so many years working together on the Neb.

"Great," he replied, turning and taking off his headset, "Lena actually helped me out a lot. I should show you what she can do."

Trinity was intrigued. She felt guilty for not asking Lena the night before after Link walked her home. Trinity had been so tired and it was awfully late, and she had forgotten this morning.

"Speak of the devil!" exclaimed Link, looking toward the entrance to the core where Lena was standing.

She grinned broadly and walked over casually, sitting down in a plug-in chair as if she'd done so all her life.

"You were talking about me?" asked Lena, looking a little smug.

"Link mentioned showing me what you guys were up to yesterday," replied Trinity.

"Can we show her?" asked Lena in an excited voice, looking to Link.

"Sure thing" said Link, "buckle up girl!"

Lena lay down on her back as Trinity stood up and walked over to strap in her feet and her arms. She stroked her cheek gently and noted that almost a full inch of Lena's hair had grown back. It was growing surprisingly quickly. Lena smiled up at her as Trinity walked around ready to plug her in.

"Alright," said Link, pushing keys and tapping screens quickly, "ready?"

Lena nodded enthusiastically and Trinity inserted the metal rod as gently as she could. She was sure Lena would cringe horribly or even cry out, but much to Trinity's surprise, she barely even flinched. Trinity looked over at Link in question but he was busy still looking at the monitors and typing.

Trinity looked back at the monitor over Lena's chair and checked that her vitals were fine before walking over to Link, looking over his shoulder expectantly.

Link was setting up the image translator so Trinity could watch. She felt a rush of anxiety. She trusted Link with her own life, but she wasn't so sure she trusted anyone with Lena's life. What if the program was dangerous?

"Alright…" said Link slowly, still concentrating on the monitors and waiting for them to load, "anytime now we should see her."

Trinity leaned closer, watching the monitor carefully. Sure enough, an image popped onto the screen. Trinity could make out Lena standing in the middle of a deserted street, similar to that of the area in New York where they found Neo. Trinity almost didn't recognize Lena. She was wearing tight jeans and a black zip up sweatshirt. Her hair was long again, a dark shade of brown, and flowing out behind her as she walked.

Trinity watched as Lena stopped after about twenty feet and remained still, glancing around her a bit anxiously. The streets were still deserted, not even a light breeze moving against the tall skyscrapers around her. Trinity was now very confused. What exactly was supposed to be happening? She was just about to ask Link when suddenly about twenty agents piled out onto the street from a nearby building. They all resembled Smith and they were walking towards Lena from about a hundred feet away, guns in hand.

"Link!" said Trinity urgently, digging her hand into his shoulder in alarm.

All her mind could process was the image of agents advancing on Lena. She didn't even noticed when Link cried out in pain when her nails dug into his skin right through his clothes.

"Relax!" said Link, looking around his shoulder at Trinity's pale shocked face, "it's just a program, they're not real."

"What are you talking about?" asked Trinity, her voice still fearful, though she had unhinged her death grip on Link, "you created agents? Why!?"

Lena was still standing where she was, not moving. Whether it was out of fear or just unconcern Trinity couldn't tell. The agents were advancing on her quickly.

"Hey, it's nothing new!" said Link looking back at the monitors with his arms crossed, "remember the agent training program? This is just better; a hundred times better to be exact. If only we had this when Neo was training. I just thought it would be a little fun for Lena."

Trinity didn't like how Link had used the word fun. Facing hundreds of potential killing machines did not seem like very reasonable fun, not for her fourteen-year-old daughter anyway.

At that moment, Trinity and Link both watched intently as Lena finally began to escape, running towards a building to her right and barreling into the front doors. She ran through the deserted lobby of what appeared to be a corporate building. She headed for the stairs and pushed through the heavy door with her side, the agents coming into the building and gaining speed.

Trinity believed Link that the program wasn't real but watching the scene put her into a state of fear. She felt her pulse quicken as Lena ran up the stairs taking two at a time. She was amazingly fast and even after ten, twenty, thirty floors never seemed to slow down or falter in her steps.

"You've obviously trained her first?" said Trinity, never taking her eyes off the monitor, "or your program is altered in physical laws."

"Actually," said Link slowly, "neither."

"What?" asked Trinity, tearing her eyes away to look at Link in disbelief, "how's that possible? There's no way she's really that fast."

"No, I agree," said Link, "she must have learned on her own, without training. It's pretty impressive I must say."

Trinity looked over at Lena's body in the chair, so small and frail. How did Lena manage to teach herself about the laws of the matrix? Trinity turned back to look at the monitors and noticed Lena had reached the top of the building and was climbing out onto the roof. The agents must have been close behind her as she kept up her speed, running to the edge of the building. It was about forty stories tall and Trinity felt herself tense involuntarily, thinking how Lena was getting just a bit too close to the edge for her liking.

"Link," said Trinity in concern, "I'm not so sure about this. Are you certain it's safe?"

"Don't worry," said Link, laughing lightly, "she's done this exact scenario dozens of times. She knows what to do."

Trinity sighed deeply, feeling the muscles of her arms and legs clench tightly as she stood staring into the monitors. She felt a sudden movement behind her and jumped in shock when an arm reached around her waist.

"What's going on?" asked Neo, looking interestingly over her shoulder.

"Lena's just having some fun in my new program," answered Link looking proudly at the monitor.

Lena was standing at the very edge of the roof top, looking down over the side. Trinity watched as the agents came pouring out of the door onto the roof just fifteen feet or so from where Lena was standing. They pulled out their guns and aimed in synchrony, Lena looking back at them quickly. She turned back to the edge and jumped. Trinity felt herself gasp as she clung onto Neo, making him back up a bit in surprise.

Lena made an inverted dive though and swung into the floor beneath her, the glass smashing into tiny pieces all around. She rolled out onto the vacant floor and immediately ran over to the stairs. Lena jumped down each flight, landing solidly on the floor each time before jumping down another. She got to the bottom quickly and ran out the door, slamming it behind her.

"Haha!" cried Link triumphantly, "I told you! She made it! It took her a few times but she's got it down now. I can't wait to try out some other stuff."

Link typed a few keys and Lena pulled out a ringing phone from her pocket, signaling her unplugging. Trinity immediately walked over and pulled out the metal rod. Neo was looking at the monitors still in fascination.

"The agents… they looked so real," he said slowly.

"Thanks!" said Link happily, taking it as a compliment, "I've been working on it for a while now."

Trinity looked down at Lena who had opened her eyes and sat up slowly in the chair.

"Whoa," said Lena, putting a hand to her head, "that always feels weird."

She looked up at Trinity, who was preoccupied with looking over at Link with extreme disapproval.

"Wasn't it cool?" asked Lena, looking for Trinity to be as excited as she was.

"Cool?" said Trinity with an eyebrow raised, "I'm not sure that's how I'd describe it."

Lena frowned instantly and Trinity felt guilt run through her.

"I just mean it scared me," said Trinity with a softer voice, "I don't ever want to have to see agents again, especially not after you, even if they aren't real."

Lena still looked downtrodden as she hopped out of the chair and walked over to where Link and Neo were talking. Neo looked up when she approached and turned to face her, curiosity etched on his face.

"How did you learn to do all that?" asked Neo in a serious tone.

"What do you mean?" asked Lena, sitting in a chair beside him.

"I mean… bending the rules like that," said Neo, looking back at the monitors for a second, "without any training, how did you know how to do that stuff?"

"I don't know," said Lena, thinking herself, "I guess I just did."

Neo and Link exchanged shocked expressions before Neo turned his attention to Trinity who was sitting in the chair Lena had recently vacated. She looked up when he did and gave him a concerned look. She wasn't so much excited as she was worried. Lena might get too overconfident and try things that were too risky.

"I'm not so sure going into these programs is such a good idea," said Trinity reluctantly.

She knew this thought would not be popular. She braced herself for an angry Lena and sure enough, she delivered.

"What!? Why!?" asked Lena, standing up from the chair in outrage.

Trinity looked over at her and sighed in frustration. She had expected the reaction but it was still irritating. She wasn't used to be so readily challenged as Neo had always been so passive.

"Lena, I'm just worried that you're getting too ahead of yourself," said Trinity, trying to maintain a calm voice.

Lena sat back down quickly and crossed her arms looking downright livid.

Neo was looking at Trinity in understanding. Trinity knew at least a part of him agreed with her that it was unwise to allow Lena to continue her experimentation so soon after being unplugged and so unprepared for the potential dangers of the matrix.

Link seemed like he wanted to argue with Trinity however, but he obviously knew well enough to know it wasn't in his place to do so. He instead turned back to the monitors and began to casually work, pretending to ignore the heated debate taking place.

Lena was still sitting with her head down, arms still crossed, kicking at a loose cable lying on the floor. Trinity could see the frustration on her face and felt another pang of strange familiarity. Lena was a little too much like herself. She was hot-tempered and let things get to her so easily.

Trinity began to feel like maybe she'd spoken too quickly. It obviously meant a lot to Lena and Trinity understood the defeating power of being denied something she felt passionately about. She opened her mouth to retract her statement when Lena spoke first, unaware of Trinity's thoughts.

"You say you care about me," she said, her voice full of contempt, "but I don't see how. You take me away from my life and put me at the mercy of a crazed lunatic, and now you won't let me do the one thing that actually makes me feel like I'm useful in this world."

Link had gone extremely quiet, and Trinity could feel the cold tension building in the room. Trinity wasn't sure if Lena meant to hurt her as badly as she just had. She was sure Lena was just angry and caught up in the heat of the moment. All the same, her words seemed to cut Trinity deeply. She kept her eyes on Lena who was staring back at her with a fierceness that actually made Trinity nervous. It was like that sweet little girl had once again transformed, only this time it was into someone cold and unpredictable.

Neo was standing motionless, looking at Lena with an expression Trinity couldn't read but she guessed was similar to her own, a mixture of regret and hurt.

"…I wish you'd never found me."

She spoke the words with such hatred and conviction that Trinity felt her blood turn cold. She swallowed and looked down at the floor, unable to look into Lena's eyes. Trinity wasn't sure what she wanted more, to walk over and slap Lena, or to break down and cry in her chair. She put her hand over her mouth and closed her eyes, still shocked at Lena's harsh words.

Link sighed and put his head down, shaking it slightly. He seemed angry too, not only at Lena's disrespect but at her ungratefulness. It hadn't been easy to find her and unplug her. More than that though, it hadn't been easy to open up their hearts to her. It was as if Lena had spat in their faces and cruelly rejected each and every kind word and action they had shown her in the past couple weeks.

Neo looked on the verge of complete emotional devastation. Trinity could see the tears in his eyes and noticed his usual uncomfortable shift when he showed emotion in front of others.

Trinity couldn't stand to see Neo so upset. Lena had known exactly what to say to hurt them all. Trinity was now beyond disappointed and hurt. She felt fury build up inside her and she clenched her fists that were resting on the chair beneath her.

"Lena," she said, looking at her in the eyes again with a dangerous edge in her voice, "go to your room… now."

Trinity said the last word with such intensity that Lena seemed to second guess her firm disposition. Trinity thought she even noticed a hint of fear flicker in her eyes. Lena stood up slowly before abruptly turning and stomping off to her room defiantly, not looking back.

"She didn't mean it," said Link reassuringly, once Lena had left the room.

"I know," said Trinity after a moment, regaining her composure, "but I still can't believe how far she'd go just to get a rise out of me. She needs to learn her place."

Neo still hadn't even looked up from his fixed point on the floor and before either Link or Trinity could address him, he promptly left, walking quickly distractedly out of the core. Link and Trinity watched him leave and exchanged looks of concern.

Trinity sighed again, looking back to where Neo's retreating form had been. She had known that Lena was going to give them grief eventually.

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Oooh Lena was kinda harsh huh? Haha. I hope you liked the chapter! Thanks for reading this far and please review!


	16. Chapter 16

I'm sorry it's taken me a little longer than usual to update. I'm hitting deadline week at college when all my essays and final projects are due. As well, exams are right around the corner, so it might be a couple weeks before I can write at my usual pace. I'll try to keep up though as I know what it's like to be impatient for a story to be updated.

Thanks for your continued reviews! They're all very much appreciated! I get that excited feeling when I see that I've gotten another review. I also get a nervous lump in my throat hoping that it's not someone hating my story. So far, all my reviews have been good so thank you SO much!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

After Neo left, Trinity waited a few minutes before following his exit and finding him in their room, sitting on the bed with his head in his hands. He was sitting leaned over with his arms resting on his knees and his eyes focused straight ahead on the wall. Trinity had seen him take up this position many times. Neo was angry. He generally did not yell, curse, or pace endlessly like Trinity did when she was upset, instead he would go into himself and take on a stature of complete apathy.

Anyone might guess that he was simply contemplating, but Trinity knew better. After so many years of living together and being so intimate, she had learned his moods as if they were her own.

Trinity stood at the doorway, knowing that at times like these Neo needed his space. She waited for him to turn to her, but he remained in his fixed position.

"Do you think we made a mistake?" he asked quietly, as if talking to himself.

Trinity did not reply, but rather thought about this question herself. She knew that Lena hadn't meant her words, but all the same, Trinity couldn't say whether or not they had made a mistake. Perhaps they should have explained things to Lena first before they unplugged her so quickly? They definitely shouldn't have unplugged Sphinx, let alone kept him on the ship for so long. Trinity couldn't argue that Lena definitely had a point there.

"She's unhappy with us Trinity," continued Neo, as if answering his previous question himself.

"That's not true," said Trinity, responding instantly this time.

After the words left her mouth however, doubt seemed to trickle into her mind. Maybe Neo was right. Maybe it had been a mistake to unplug Lena. Did they honestly think that the fourteen year gap which separated them from her would simply vanish overnight? Were they fools to believe that Lena could so easily adjust to this new life? After all, even if Lena was angry, there must have been some truth behind her words. Trinity began to feel defeated and let down. She had just begun to feel as if Lena was really settling into their world and getting more used to being around her and Neo. Perhaps it had been too good to be true.

"You heard what she said," contended Neo, looking at Trinity for the first time in their discussion, "we made a mistake, just like we did with Sphinx. Just like when Morpheus unplugged Cypher… it was a mistake."

Trinity couldn't believe what Neo was saying. He had been the one who found Lena. He had believed that she was special in some way. He had been the one to approach her. Neo had managed to remain so optimistic this whole time, and suddenly he was thinking the worst.

"How can you say that? Lena is nothing like Sphinx… or Cypher."

Trinity hesitated before she said Cypher's name, as she usually did. The fact that Neo would even dare to compare their daughter to someone so unspeakably cruel made Trinity defensive.

She walked over to stand in front of Neo. She was about to heatedly challenge him and try to convince him, and herself, that Neo was wrong. As she looked down into his face however, she felt her anger dissipate instantly. As she got close enough, Trinity could see the pain hiding in his eyes.

"I just… can't believe she would say that," said Neo, turning away from Trinity to stare down at the floor.

He spoke slowly and with difficultly, as if each word was causing him more pain. Trinity understood why he had looked away. He knew that she sensed his intense emotion and he never wanted anyone to see him so vulnerable, even her. That was something they both shared.

"It's my fault really," said Trinity with a sigh.

Neo suddenly looked up at her, the sadness in his eyes being replaced by curiosity and a hint of shock.

"What?" said Trinity defensively, "I can admit I'm to blame sometimes."

Neo smiled a little at her words and she could see him relax, which made her smile back with relief.

"It's not your fault," he said, in a more normalized tone.

"Yes it is," said Trinity firmly, "I shouldn't have told her she couldn't work in the programs anymore. She was so excited about it and I just tore it all down. It was really quite awful of me. I was just afraid… I want to be able to protect her still. I guess since I missed her growing up, I wanted to keep her a child as long as possible."

Neo smiled at her again and brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. She looked at him in hesitation, waiting for him to make a comment about how rarely she admitted to a mistake.

He surprised her however by saying, "I think we both are to blame for that. I forget that she's a teenager. I suppose they get angry sometimes don't they?"

Trinity smiled at his lighthearted realization and nodded her head, feeling all her previous doubt empty from her mind.

"We didn't make a mistake Neo," said Trinity in a soft but decisive voice, "you of all people should know that. It was fate that you found her."

A soft padding of footsteps could be heard coming towards the door that was still ajar. Neo looked up before he could answer Trinity, to see Lena standing awkwardly in the doorway. Trinity looked over too and she could tell by her flushed face that Lena had probably been crying.

Lena didn't make eye contact with them, but kept her hands behind her back, and stared at the floor nervously, afraid to come any closer than the doorway.

"Are… are you going to send me back?" she asked in voice that was low with what Trinity guessed was a mixture of regret and shame.

"… do you want to go back?" asked Neo, testing to see what her real feelings were.

Lena shook her head firmly, still looking at the floor.

Trinity noticed Neo smile a little more, obviously feeling more confident that indeed Lena hadn't meant what she said.

"Good," he said, "because you can't go back anyway."

Lena looked up at that comment and smiled a little, a rush of relief appearing on her face.

"I'm sorry about what I said," Lena spoke more confidently, "I didn't mean any of it. I was just upset."

She was still looking apprehensive, as if her apology may not be enough.

Trinity decided to appease her thoughts by sitting down on the bed beside Neo and motioning for Lena to come over and stand in front of her. Lena came forward, though looking more afraid than relieved, and Trinity took her hands gently in her own.

"I need you to understand Lena that sometimes you're not always going to agree with the choices I make, but we're all a crew on here and we need to respect and listen to each other."

Lena put her head down again and nodded slightly, looking shameful once again at the reprimand.

"That being said," continued Trinity, "don't ever think that just because you get angry or upset that we're going to care about you any less. You'll be with us for as long as you want and I hope that's a long time."

"I care about you too," said Lena quietly, shy again with the intimacy of the sentiment, "I want to stay."

"Good," said Neo from beside them with a small smile.

He pulled Lena into a hug and sighed deeply before pulling away.

Lena smiled at him, seeming to return to her old self before Trinity caught her attention again.

"I think I was wrong," she said, causing Lena to look at her curiously, "I shouldn't have said you couldn't work in the program. You've been working hard and you're old enough to be helping out. I'm sorry I didn't realize that before."

Lena seemed stunned by the confession and stood for a moment speechless. She practically jumped on Trinity, throwing her arms around her neck.

"Thank you," she spoke softly, though her actions were not so subtle.

"You're welcome," replied Trinity, trying to pry out of Lena's tight grasp so she could breathe again, "of course you should go apologize to Link first."

Lena nodded in compliance and ran out of the room abruptly. Trinity tuned to look at Neo and smiled again, laughing lightly at Lena's desperation. She was definitely passionate about working.

Neo smiled back at her but then suddenly frowned and looked back down at the floor in thought.

"I completely forgot," he said, "Morpheus wanted us to go up front to talk about going back in."

"Oh," said Trinity in surprise when Neo stood up and looked back at her.

He grabbed her hand as she stood up and they walked to the front of the ship together, passing by Lena and Link in the core, already deeply engrossed in their work.

They entered the pilot's room and Trinity sat down beside Morpheus, with Neo standing behind them, leaning against the wall. Morpheus looked up when they came in and waited for them to sit down before speaking.

"The council has insisted that we find Foster," he said, a hint of frustration in his voice.

"I don't understand," said Trinity, feeling her own frustration jump out of her words, "why has it been so difficult to find him? We've never had so much trouble before tracking someone down. It's like he's one step ahead of us all the time. We have to come up with some sort of plan."

"That's what I've been trying to do," said Morpheus, nodding in agreement, "we've got to catch him somewhere he can't run away."

"The subway," said Neo after a moment, "he takes the subway to work… why didn't I think of that before…?"

"A lot's happened," said Trinity, feeling her thoughts drift back to the horror surrounding Sphinx, "I think we've all been a little off our game."

The truth was they'd really only gone in to look for Foster a few times, and each time had been cut short before they'd gotten a good lead on where he'd run off too.

"We'll have Link run a search for him," said Morpheus, refocusing the discussion, "maybe we can catch him on his way home."

Trinity and Neo both nodded in approval before all three of them walked back to the core. Lena was sitting beside Link, both of them staring intently at the monitors.

"Link," said Morpheus in a commanding voice, "I need you to run a search for Foster."

"Already done Captain," replied Link, without turning around, "we're on him right now. He's leaving work."

"Take them into the subway station," said Morpheus, "they're going to cut him off there."

Lena turned around when Morpheus said this.

"Can I come too?" she asked, looking hopeful.

"No," said Trinity quickly on reflex.

She saw Lena's face immediately fall and she added, "you have to help Link if something goes wrong."

Lena seemed to cheer up a bit at the idea of being helpful.

Trinity walked over to strap in Neo who had already sat down in the chair. She got in the chair beside him, as she'd done so many times before, and waited for Morpheus to plug them both in.

"See you later," said Lena, looking at them both.

Trinity smiled back at her before Morpheus pushed the metal rod inside her. She felt the rush of being launched forward painfully, and then opened her eyes to see the dark subway station. It was deserted with only a few loose newspapers littering the ground. Only the dull sounds of cars overhead could be heard.

Trinity waited for the call from Link and confirmed they were in, before glancing down at her watch. It was almost seven at night.

"I'm guessing about five minutes," said Trinity looking at Neo.

"Yeah," he said, looking around the station, clearly distracted.

Trinity looked at him curiously before she remembered.

"Oh right," she said, "I forgot you don't like subways."

Trinity couldn't really blame Neo. After all, he had, not so long ago, fought Smith down here and almost died. Not to mention he'd also been trapped in a programmed subway station, unable to escape from the Trainman. That would certainly be enough reason for anyone to develop at least a mind discomfort for the place.

Within a few moments, the rush of a train was sounding from the tunnel to the left, barreling closer to them as they waited hidden behind two pillars. Trinity watched as the train pulled up and the subway doors opened. A group of people walked out and to their luck, Foster came out last, dawdling a little, looking around nervously. He must have been waiting for them to show up again.

Trinity felt a rush of excitement and nervousness as they'd finally managed to catch up to him. She and Neo stepped out into view and Foster froze in his place when he saw them. They were standing about fifteen feet from him before he ran and managed to get onto the subway again before the doors closed.

Neo ran forwards and managed to pry the doors open for him and Trinity. They got onto the train and watched Foster sprint down the empty aisle as the train began to move. They took off after him, Neo in front and Trinity trailing just behind him.

Foster was fast, surprisingly fast. Of course, Neo was much faster.

It didn't take long before Foster reached the end of the train and stopped, looking around panicked. He spotted an emergency exit window and kicked it opened with his foot. Just as he was about to jump out however, they caught up to him and Neo pulled out his gun and pointed it at Foster's head.

"Don't jump," said Neo in an unyielding voice, "we just want to talk."

Foster obviously didn't believe Neo as his panicked state heightened and he was breathing frantically, staring into the barrel of Neo's gun.

"What do you want from me?" he asked, his voice shaking in terror.

For such a quick moving and sneaky guy, Foster was suddenly nothing more than a gutless coward. Of course, Trinity realized anyone would probably be terrified to face them. She took a bit of pride in herself and shifted into a confrontational stance as she looked over at Foster in unnecessary intimidation.

"I told you, we just want to talk," repeated Neo.

Foster put up his hands and spoke in a shaky but urgent voice.

"Alright, alright. Just please put the gun down, Neo."

Did he just say Neo? Trinity felt her entire body tense and her stance crumble. Suddenly she didn't feel so confident anymore.

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Ooooh… how does he know who Neo is?! Haha, I love how I get intrigued by my own cliffhangers. Let me know what you thought please! I LOVE reviews!


	17. Chapter 17

Today is my birthday! Yippee! Happy Birthday to me! )

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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How did Foster know who Neo was? Trinity felt her uncertainty grow and her stomach began to tighten.

Neo did not comply to Foster's request to lower his gun, but instead pushed it forward closed to Foster's head. Neo seemed to be just as unnerved as Trinity was.

"How do you know my name?" asked Neo after a long moment of silence.

"Please… calm down," said Foster, still looking nervous as ever.

"Answer me!" screamed Neo, making both Foster and Trinity jump in surprise.

"Alright!" he quipped back, even more jumpy that before, "I was sent here to trap you."

"What?" asked both Neo and Trinity in unison.

"I was sent into the matrix," Foster explained, his voice still edgy.

"What are you talking about? Sent by who?" asked Neo.

Trinity didn't like where this was going. Suddenly she felt vulnerable and in danger. She glanced back behind them at the empty train. It was moving with rickety lurches and the lights were dimly flashing. It felt almost as if it was getting darker, like something was zoning in on them, about to attack. She looked back at Foster with uneasiness etched on her face.

"All I know is that I was supposed to get you here," said Foster in an urgent voice.

Neo lowered his gun slowly, his eyes burning into Foster's scared looking face.

"You're coming back with us," said Neo in a threatening voice, "don't try to run away or I _will _kill you."

Foster said nothing, but nodded his head slowly.

Trinity could feel it again, the sense of forbidding.

"Neo," she said with a hint of fear in her voice.

"I know, I can feel it too," he replied, "we have to get back."

They quickly walked to the train doors. Neo was keeping his eyes on Foster, making sure he was following, the gun still in his hand and ready to aim.

They waited a few moments for the train to reach its next stop and the three walked through the doors onto the platform.

As they stepped off the train, a noise screeched somewhere down the tunnel ahead. Suddenly the lights above the platform flickered a few times and went out, leaving only the faintest glow from the train that was still dimly lit.

Trinity felt the fear build up inside of her. What was happening? Was it a power surge? Trinity felt sure that something was very wrong. That screech didn't sound like anything Trinity had ever heard in her life.

There was another loud screech somewhere down the tunnel, this time louder than the last, closer than the last.

Trinity looked at Neo, only able to seem the faint outline of his face and body.

"What is that?" she asked, instinctively moving closer.

Her breathing hitched and her heart was pounding loudly in her head.

"It's him," said Foster somewhere in the darkness, "he's come for you."

The train began to move beside them and soon they were encased in complete darkness.

The screech came again, even louder. It seemed to switch something in Neo as he abruptly grabbed Trinity's arm.

"Come on," he said desperately in his ear.

Trinity felt Neo pull her close against him.

"He's coming for you," repeated Foster.

His voice was distant, coming from the other side of the platform.

"Come back!" Neo yelled to him.

It was to no avail however as Foster didn't answer and the screech came again, sounding loud in Trinity's ears. It was so loud it was almost painful.

Trinity tightened her grip on Neo.

"Neo!" she cried desperately, knowing if they didn't leave now they might never get out alive.

He seemed to get her point and Trinity felt her feet lift off the ground. Air was rushing past her and she realized they were flying back down the tunnel. She closed her eyes and a moment later felt ground beneath her. She opened her eyes, hoping to see light, but only darkness surrounded them still.

She felt him ease his grip and she stepped back.

The sound of a phone ringing filled the darkness and Trinity whipped around to face the sound. She ran over and felt for the noise, picking up a payphone. She looked around to try to see Neo and then felt him move up behind her.

"Go!" he said urgently.

Trinity put the receiver to her ear and closed her eyes. When she opened them she squinted at the light of the Neb. She waited for Morpheus to pull out her rod and for her eyes to adjust before sitting up slowly.

Lena was standing beside the chair, staring down at her with fear.

Trinity instinctively looked over at Neo, her breathing still labored and full of fear.

Neo opened his eyes as Morpheus unplugged him.

"What the hell happened?" Neo asked, sitting up slowly.

"God only knows," said Link, looking over at them both, "I don't know why I didn't see it before."

"See what before?" asked Trinity, standing up and putting an arm around Lena who had moved in to hug her waist.

"That Foster isn't human."

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I'm sorry that this chapter was shorter than the usual. I'll try to update again soon. It's been a busy weekend for me, but after next week I'll have a lot more time. Thanks again for your patience!

Happy Birthday to me, again!


	18. Chapter 18

Thank you so much for your reviews, and especially for all your birthday wishes!! I had a great birthday and got lots of nice presents! D This chapter is longer, sorry again that the last one was so short. I know that's disappointing.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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Trinity looked down at Lena, still huddled beside her. Trinity felt intense relief that she hadn't allowed Lena to come with them into the matrix.

"God, tell me that didn't just happen," said Neo, putting his head in his hands, still sitting in the plug-in chair, "I don't want to have to deal with this shit anymore."

Lena looked over at him when he said that and her slightly uneasy expression turned into one of deep anxiousness and fear.

"Link and I will try to trace whatever it was and find out as much as we can," said Morpheus, "it could be an old program of some kind, perhaps a scrap of the machines' defense system."

"How's that possible?" asked Trinity, her voice full of concern.

"I don't know," replied Morpheus honestly.

"I can help," piped up Lena, looking up at them with pleading eyes.

"We'll see," replied Morpheus, now distracted as he stood behind Link, watching the lines of code intently.

Trinity noticed Lena's face fall and was uncomfortably reminded of the beginning of the argument not so long ago. She decided to jump in before Lena could dwell on it.

"I should teach you about the ship, you'll have to learn if you want to stay on."

Trinity needed something to distract her from the problem at hand and figured it was a good idea to distract Lena as well.

"Okay," said Lena compliantly.

Trinity smiled back at her, relieved and proud that she'd managed to stray from another possibly tense situation.

Trinity led them towards the front of the ship, while Neo stayed behind with Morpheus and Link. Lena fell into step behind Trinity as they entered the pilot's room. Trinity sat down in the captain's chair and motioned for Lena to sit down beside her.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Lena, looking out the large window into the vast sewer system.

Trinity realized Lena had never been in the room before.

"Big isn't it?" asked Trinity, watching Lena's fascination.

"Why don't they move Zion to the surface?" asked Lena after a moment.

"They're trying to," replied Trinity, "but the conditions are stable enough."

"Oh," said Lena, becoming more interested in all the buttons and controls in front of her.

"Can I drive!?" she asked, her eyes wide with excitement.

Trinity let out a stale laugh.

"Ha, I don't think Morpheus would be too pleased."

Lena grunted in disappointment.

"Relax," said Trinity, "all in good time."

Lena gave a sigh before looking back out the window pensively.

"That day I was with Link," she began slowly, "he explained about how to plug-in to the matrix, but I was wondering…"

"What?" asked Trinity after a moment when she didn't finish.

"If you set up the line, then plugged yourself in… would you still need an operator?" asked Lena, still looking intently out the window.

Trinity thought for a moment, unsure of the answer. No one had ever really attempted to plug in themselves before… had they?

"I don't think it's impossible," Trinity finally answered, "how could someone insert themselves?"

Lena looked deep in thought for a moment before shrugging her shoulders.

"Yeah, I guess not."

"Trinity," came Morpheus' voice from the doorway, catching their attention, "we've found something."

Morpheus walked out signaling for them to follow.

When they reached the core, Neo was sitting in a chair beside Link, looking quite downcast. Trinity and Lena sat down too, waiting for Morpheus to explain.

"Unfortunately," began Morpheus, "I was correct. What was in that subway station was a trace of the old machine defense system and Foster was a part of it. He was acting as bait, luring you into a trap the program set up. You only barely made it out in time. It's reeking havoc in our own operation systems set up to maintain the matrix. It's attacking our systems and if we don't shut it down it could potentially destroy everything we've worked for."

Trinity let out the breath she was holding. They'd been in the clear for so long. They'd believed that the only problems left to face were manageable and man-created. This sounded dangerous.

"How exactly are we supposed to shut it down?" asked Trinity in a deflated voice, clearly showing her lack of enthusiasm.

"You must go back and confront it," replied Morpheus, "perhaps we can reason with it and explain the situation."

Trinity felt sick to her stomach all of a sudden. Confronting it was definitely not something she wanted to do. Trinity looked at Lena just a few feet over who seemed to be feeling the same way, a nauseated look on her face as well.

"Alright," said Trinity with a sigh, "if we have to do this, let's just do it."

"No," said Neo without looking up from where he was sitting, "I'm going in alone."

"What?" asked Trinity in disbelief.

They always did things together. It was who they were, a team. Trinity felt a rush of betrayal shoot straight into her heart. Since when did Neo refuse her help?

He looked up at her with pleading eyes.

"If something happens I can defend myself better," he replied, "I'm sorry."

Trinity breathed in deeply, willing herself to think rationally. A part of her wanted to scream at him for saying it, but a part of her knew he was right. Whatever it was, it was dangerous, and Neo didn't need her to look after too. What happened earlier had clearly been indication enough that she needed to step down. It took everything she had to slowly nod her head, staring down at the floor.

"Thank you," said Neo with sincerity.

Trinity looked up into his eyes and felt relieved. He obviously realized how hard it must have been for her to comply. She gave a small smile that he returned.

"We should move quickly," said Morpheus, catching Trinity off guard.

"What?" she asked in surprise, "you mean he's going in right now?"

"We need to stop it quickly before it destroys all our systems," replied Morpheus, walking over where Neo had already laid down in the chair, and buckling him in.

Trinity rushed over to Neo and looked down at him as Morpheus left to give them a moment. Neo reached up and pulled Trinity down for a kiss. It was quick but Trinity felt his love through it.

"I love you," he whispered, his face only an inch from hers still.

"I know," she said and swallowed nervously, "I love you too… please be careful."

"I'll always come back to you," he said looking deep into her eyes.

Trinity kissed him once more before standing back up. She nodded to him and looked over at Lena who was approaching cautiously.

"Hey," said Neo softly when he saw Lena's scared face, "I'll be right back."

Lena stood still for a moment before walking over quickly to hug him. Neo hugged her back tightly and looked up at Trinity with a sad expression. Trinity felt for him. It was hard enough all the times he'd left her, now he had to leave Lena too.

Lena stepped back and Trinity put a protective arm around her again.

Morpheus walked back over and Trinity gave him a slight nod of assent.

Morpheus put a hand on Neo's shoulder.

"Ready?" he asked looking down at him.

Neo sighed and closed his eyes, nodding.

Morpheus waited for Link's signal and inserted the rod.

Trinity hugged Lena a little tighter as they watched Neo slip away.

They walked over to stand by Link and watch the code. Trinity watched as Neo arrived back in the subway station.

"Do you know where the program is?" asked Trinity.

"No, but we figure it'll know where Neo is," replied Link ruefully.

Trinity waited and they all looked intently at the screen, though Lena must have just been waiting for them to react, as she couldn't read the code yet herself.

Trinity saw that the station was otherwise deserted. It was late in the evening still and it was getting darker. Neo stood anxiously for at least five minutes before something happened. The code changed and Trinity knew immediately the program had found him.

"There it is," she said in a deadpan voice, her eyes focused on Neo.

She felt Lena shift uneasily beside her.

"What's it doing?" asked Link out loud.

"It's waiting," replied Morpheus.

Waiting for what, Trinity wondered? She gripped the back of Link's chair instinctively, fearing for Neo. Trinity watched as the program had taken on the form of a man and walked towards Neo calmly. Neo turned and addressed him. He must have been asking the program to back down but Trinity couldn't tell exactly what they were saying.

"What's going on?" asked Lena in a small voice.

"I'm not sure," replied Trinity quietly, as if they could hear her.

Suddenly the program launched forward at Neo and he flew backwards into the concrete wall, slamming into it hard and falling to the ground. Trinity looked over panicked as Neo's body was impacted roughly in the chair. Lena looked over too and made a fearful noise somewhere between a cry and a gasp.

"What happened?" she asked desperately.

Trinity didn't answer but looked back at the monitor whispering helplessly, "get up Neo. Get up."

Trinity often talked to Neo if he was ever plugged in and she wasn't. She felt as if in some way he could hear her. They'd seemed to have the connection since the very beginning.

Trinity was staring at the monitor, waiting for Neo to move, when his image vanished along with the program.

"What the…?" exclaimed Link.

"Where'd they go!?" Trinity asked, fear evident in her voice.

"No idea!" Link replied.

He switched the view of the monitor and scanned the station, searching with his eyes before throwing his hands up.

"They just… disappeared," he said desperately.

"Keep looking," said Morpheus.

Trinity looked back at Neo's body and felt her chest tighten with anxiety. Where was he? She looked up at his heart monitor and saw that he was indeed still alive and breathing.

"What happened!?" cried Lena once again, this time yanking on Trinity's sweater to get her attention.

"I don't know Lena!" said Trinity sharply, her anxiety level rising, "Link, is there any sign of him?"

"No, still nothing," said Link quickly, typing away furiously.

Trinity practically shoved Link out of his seat, butting in beside him to look closely at the monitor herself. She scanned the entire station, looking in every corner and down each tunnel. Empty. It was as if Neo had literally vanished.

"Can you call him?" asked Trinity, remembering the cell phones they always carried.

"There's no signal," said Link quickly, "I just checked."

"Check again!" said Trinity desperately.

"Trinity, calm down," said Morpheus firmly, "we'll find him."

Trinity turned around quickly to face him and saw Lena desperately clutching the chair underneath her. She was looking at Trinity with complete terror. This was enough to sober Trinity up enough to take a deep breath and sit down. She knew getting worked up wouldn't do any good. Neo was alive and as long as he was they would find him. Trinity repeated it to herself over and over again in her head. They would find him.

She stood up defiantly.

"You have to send me in," she said to Link, though looking straight at Morpheus.

"No," said Morpheus, "we don't know where he is. Whether you're here on in there won't make a difference."

Trinity sat back down completely defeated. She knew he was right again. She put her head in her hands and willed the emotion to stay inside of her.

She felt something brush against her and looked up to see Lena reaching over to hold her hand. Trinity could feel herself let go of her inhibition and grabbed for Lena, pulling her into a tight hug, knowing that if she could share her pain and fear about losing Neo with anyone, it was Lena.

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I hope you liked the chapter. I always greatly appreciate reviews!


	19. Chapter 19

Yay! All my classes are finished, now I just have to get through exams. Woopee!

Disclaimer: I do now own The Matrix.

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Trinity replayed it in her mind over and over again. One second Neo was there… then he was gone. Where did he go? Could it be like when he was captured and taken to the world between here and the matrix? How could they even begin searching for him when there were so many places he could be? If only the oracle was still around. Trinity never really appreciated her guidance as much as she did now that she was gone. After they defeated the machines the oracle had felt she was no longer needed. Trinity begged to differ.

She was sitting in Link's chair staring at the matrix code. It was the middle of the night and Trinity had volunteered to stay up and keep searching. She had run through as much code as was humanly possible. It didn't help that she was so distraught. It made focusing a more than difficult task.

Trinity had her face propped up in her hand, the other hand now mindlessly clicking keys. She wanted to look for Neo, desperately and furiously, but inside of her something was just so defeated to keep it up. She let the misery wash over her as she dropped her hand to her lap.

Trinity looked over at Lena who was fast asleep in a chair beside Neo. She had wanted to stay up and help Trinity but soon grown weary as well. Trinity sighed painfully and suppressed the urge to break down and cry. She felt so helpless, so useless.

She crossed her arms over the keyboard, letting her head slump down on them. She tilted her head to look over her shoulder at Neo. Her eyes felt so heavy and her spirit so exhausted, she knew that sleep would find her at any moment, and she let it come.

Trinity awoke to a loud beeping noise. She jerked her head up to the monitors in front of her. It took her a moment to realize where she was and what the noise had been. She must have accidentally hit the release key in her sleep. She yawned widely, allowing herself a moment to wake up.

She looked up at the monitors again, and propped her head up watching the code once again. She decided to do a quick scan to see if perhaps by some unlikely chance Neo had returned. She focused her eyes and checked the subway station, but as she suspected, it was still completely deserted.

Trinity checked the clock on the computer and saw that it was almost five in the morning. She was supposed to wake Link up at four to take over before she fell sleep. She felt guilty, knowing that she probably should have gotten him earlier. She sat up straight and took one last took at the code before turning around.

Trinity stood up and stretched her legs out. She walked over to Neo and brushed a piece of his hair away from his forehead. He looked as if he was sleeping, so peaceful, and Trinity felt her heart wrench painfully. She wanted so badly for him to come back to her, just as he'd always promised her he would.

She looked over at Lena, who was still lying in the chair, though now she was stretched out on her back, in the same position as Neo. Trinity felt an odd sensation move through her body. Something wasn't right.

Trinity walked over to the chair and put a hand on Lena's shoulder to wake her up. She pulled back quickly however when she noticed it. The monitor above her head, the stiff position of her body, the rod inserted in her head, Lena was plugged in.

Trinity felt her breath being sucked right out of her lungs and she put a hand to her mouth in shock. No. No, how could she have done it? Trinity managed to force her body into to move enough to run over to the monitors again. She frantically searched the station, the street, the tunnels, everywhere. There was no sign of her. Lena had disappeared just like Neo. Trinity let out a cry of desperation as panic rushed through her. She felt dizzy and completely out of control.

"No," she said out loud to herself, squeezing her eyes shut. It must be a dream. She must still be lying across the keyboard, fast asleep. This just wasn't possible. It was a dream, all just a dream.

Trinity opened her eyes again and turned around sharply to look back at both Neo and Lena, still unconscious. It wasn't a dream. It was actually happening. She had to do something.

Trinity ran as fast as she could back to the rooms and pounded first on Link's door then on Morpheus'. Link came out first, half dressed, and looking completely panicked too.

"What? Did you find him?" asked Link, his own voice desperate.

"Lena," said Trinity, catching her breath from running and being so panicked, "She's plugged herself in."

"What?" asked Link in disbelief.

Morpheus had emerged when she spoke and was now looking at Trinity confused. He stood for only a second however, before running past her and out into the core, Trinity and Link following closely behind.

Morpheus stood over Lena, looking up at the monitor above her head, showing that indeed, she was plugged in.

"How's this possible?" asked Morpheus, not looking up.

"It's not," said Link from behind Trinity, "someone plugged her in."

Trinity wheeled around quickly to look at Link who was staring at her uneasily.

"What?" she asked in defense, "you think _I_ plugged her in? Link, why would I do that?"

"You're not yourself Trinity," replied Link, "you're upset. Maybe you didn't realize what you were doing."

Trinity couldn't believe what he was saying. Link was accusing her of losing her mind and endangering the life of her daughter. All she'd done was fallen asleep!

Although Trinity knew Link was wrong, she still felt guilt pull at her conscience. She shouldn't have fallen asleep. She remembered Lena's conversation with her just the day before. Lena had asked about this, about plugging herself in. Why hadn't Trinity seen it coming?

"I fell asleep," said Trinity desperately, "I woke up and she was plugged in. I had nothing to do with it!"

"Stop!" said Morpheus, turning around suddenly, "this isn't helping. It doesn't matter how she did it, it's done."

Trinity put a hand to her forehead in exasperation. She could feel the headache mounting and the pain reverberate inside of her. This was all just too much. The two people that meant everything to her were both in danger. Morpheus was right. They couldn't just stand around arguing about this, they had to do something. She had to do something.

Link seemed to come to his senses too and walked quickly over to the controls, typing away furiously, and scanning the code.

"I already looked," said Trinity, looking past Link at the lines of code as well, "she's not there."

Link didn't reply but continued searching, his hand working furiously and he eyes frantic. Morpheus walked over and stood behind him, looking as well. Trinity instead looked back over at Neo and Lena. She walked over and placed her hand over Lena's. She felt anger and fear, both overwhelming. She heard herself talk to Lena as she would often talk to Neo.

"Why did you do this?"

Trinity gripped Lena's hand tighter and took in a deep breath.

"I found her!" cried Link all of a sudden.

Trinity whipped around and ran over to Link's side, staring into the code. There she was.

Lena was walking done the subway tunnel in the pitch dark. Trinity must not have searching far enough down the tunnel.

"Oh god, what's she doing?" asked Trinity, looking closer at the monitor, feeling immediate relief.

At least they'd found her.

"She's looking for him," she Morpheus slowly, looking intently at the monitor as well.

Trinity looked up at Morpheus as he said this, then back towards the screen.

"Oh Lena…" she said in a sad tone.

She felt sympathy for Lena. She'd obviously felt as desperate and helpless in the situation as Trinity had.

"Jesus," said Link between them, "how did she get inside?"

"I don't know," replied Trinity, not angry anymore but resolute, "but you have to get her out. Does she have a phone with her?"

"Um…," said Link.

He typed for a while and eventually another screen popped up showing a map of the subway system. He pointed to a dot on the left side of the screen.

"Ahah! Yes! There's the signal," he said triumphantly.

"Alright," said Morpheus, "call her now and try to reason with her calmly."

Trinity looked up into Morpheus' eyes. He looked back at her with equal intensity. They both knew what might happen if Lena didn't get out soon. Whatever took Neo could take Lena too and she couldn't defend herself like Neo could.

They watched as Lena walked briskly through the tunnel, never faltering in her steps. She reached the entrance to another platform and Link moved to pull his headset on.

"Alright," he said reaching down to type something, "here goes nothing."

They watched as Lena suddenly froze in her steps, looking down at her pocket, where the cell phone must have been.

"Come on," whispered Trinity, willing for Lena to pick it up.

Lena didn't move and Trinity felt her grip tighten on Link's shoulder.

"Trin," said Link looking over at her and taking her hand away, "you really need to get one of those stress balls or something."

Trinity ignored him and kept her eyes focused on Lena. Trinity felt herself slump with disappointment as she realized Lena wasn't going to answer it.

However, Lena suddenly took it out of her pocket and flipped it open quickly.

Trinity pressed her head close to the receiver in Link's ear, attempting to listen.

"Hey," said Link, in a surprisingly cheerful voice.

Trinity guessed he was trying to come off nonchalant so Lena wouldn't get defiant or defensive.

Trinity could hear Lena's small voice answer back.

"I'm going to find him."

She spoke with unwavering confidence.

"Alright," said Link, still sounding rather cheerful, "but I don't think you're going to find him down there. Come on back so you can help us look."

"No," replied Lena firmly, "this is the only way."

Link sighed into the receiver, losing all of his patience "Lena…"

Lena made to hang up the phone and Trinity rushed to grab the headset from Link when he took it off.

"Lena!" she said desperately, and watched as Lena quickly pulled the phone back to her ear.

"Mom?" she said in a quiet voice, as if unsure.

"Lena, don't hang up please, just listen to me."

"I have to find him, Mom."

"I know. I know how badly you want to find him. I do too. We all do. But, you're not going to find him that way. He's not down there. I don't know where he is, but I do not that you shouldn't be in there. It's no safe. Please, you have to come back."

Lena was silent for a moment and Trinity prayed that she could feel her worry and would find it in her heart to listen.

"…Okay."

Trinity let out a breath she'd been holding for almost a minute.

"Thank god," she said, emotion evident in her voice.

"I'm sorry," said Lena, "I just wanted to help."

"I know," replied Trinity calming down, "it's okay. Just let us get you out. Link will find an exit and call you."

"Okay."

Lena hung up the phone and Trinity took the headset off.

"I found an exit," said Link, typing quickly, "a payphone just up on the platform."

Trinity felt another wave of relief. They would be able to get Lena out.

"Okay, it's ringing," said Link.

They watched as Lena looked over at the payphone and climbed up off the tracks and onto the platform. She walked over quickly and was about to pick up the phone when she stopped short, her hand in mid-air.

"What's happening?" asked Trinity, looking at Link for an answer.

"The code… look," he said slowly, pointing to the monitor.

Trinity could make out that something was different. The code looked strange. The station was still empty, but something had changed. She felt more panic invade her. No. They had been so close to getting her out.

"What is it?" asked Trinity, her voice stressed again.

"It's the program," replied Morpheus in a grave tone.

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Ooh! Is it kind of scary? Let me know what you thought please! Revieeeeeews, how I love them!


	20. Chapter 20

I should be studying right now... teehee…

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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"No!" said Trinity in shock, "no! Link, get her out now!"

"The phone, it's still ringing!" replied Link, "all she has to do is answer it."

Lena was still frozen, her hand unmoving, the phone only inches away. Trinity couldn't understand. Why didn't she just grab the phone? Was the program talking to her? Was Lena in shock? Trinity let the questions run through her head before speaking again.

"What's going on?" she asked, looking from Link to Morpheus quickly.

Link shrugged his shoulders, still looking intently at the monitor. They were all waiting for something to happen.

"Lena, pick it up. C'mon, pick it up." Trinity was mumbling to herself, feeling her panic return.

Though the code maintained its odd structure, the station still appeared to be empty except for Lena. They all watched as suddenly Lena spun around and jumped back down onto the tracks, sprinting down the tunnel. Trinity reacted instantly.

"Link! You have to send me in!"

"Already on it," he replied, working quickly.

Trinity ran to an empty chair and laid down, as Morpheus quickly ran over to insert her. She closed her eyes and waited.

"Link!" she called impatiently.

"Hold on!" he called back in exasperation.

Trinity clenched the arms of the chair, willing time to slow down. She had to hurry. Something was after Lena. Soon enough, Trinity felt Morpheus insert the rod and she squeezed her eyes shut. She opened them a moment later to find herself on an empty platform. She turned to run down the tunnel but realized she had no idea which way. She pulled the cell phone out of her pocket and called Link.

"Link! Where is she?"

"The tunnel to your left. She's coming towards you fast... surprisingly fast."

Trinity abruptly hung up the phone and threw it into her pocket, already running and jumping down onto the tracks. She took off down the tunnel, everything soon becoming completely dark. Within a few seconds she could hear Lena, her steps heavy and echoing.

Trinity forced her body to move faster, trying to reach Lena. She could now hear Lena's heavy labored breathing. She was almost there… twenty feet… ten feet. Trinity was about to call out to her when she underestimated the distance and Lena came barreling into her. Lena screamed and fell backwards.

"Lena! It's okay, it's me!" said Trinity, feeling for Lena in the darkness.

"It's coming!" she said, her voice shaking and terrified.

"Let's go, now!" replied Trinity, grabbing Lena and pulling her up.

Trinity ran back to the platform, dragging Lena behind her. They emerged into the dim light and Trinity jumped up onto the platform, helping a struggling and exhausted Lena. Trinity ran over to the payphone which was now ringing and put the receiver to Lena's ear, but not before Lena screamed and jumped backwards. Trinity was left with the phone still in her hand, looking at Lena confused.

"What? Come on, take it!" yelled Trinity urgently.

"He said he'd kill me if I answered it!" Lena cried, fear overwhelming her.

Realization dawned on Trinity. The program, it _had_ spoken to her. That's why Lena didn't answer the phone. Trinity refocused on the task at hand, remembering the urgency of the situation.

"Lena, it's okay. Trust me, just take it please."

It took Lena a minute before she slowly walked forwards again and took the phone gingerly out of Trinity's hand. Trinity kept her eyes on Lena until Lena took a deep breath and put the receiver to her ear, disappearing. Trinity hung up the phone and waited for it to ring again.

She looked back towards the tunnel and gasped when she saw him. The program was standing not twenty feet from her. The look on his face was not however of anger or determination, but of contentment, oddly enough. Trinity wasn't about to ask him how he was feeling however, as she quickly turned back and picked up the now ringing phone.

Trinity opened her eyes to the Neb and sat up as soon as Morpheus removed the rod. She looked over at Lena who was curled up in the chair, looking terrified still. Trinity moved over and pulled Lena into a hug. She was comforting Lena as well as herself. The magnitude of what had just happened hit her and she pulled back to look at Lena, letting her fear manifest itself into anger.

"What the hell were you thinking!?"

Lena looked up at Trinity with her mouth open, fear in her eyes. Trinity figured that the fear had been transferred from running away from the program in the matrix to having to fess up to what she'd done.

Morpheus and Link were sitting by the controls watching Lena as well.

"I just…" Lena began, stumbling in her nerves, "I thought I could find him."

"I told you!" said Trinity, looking down at her with a mix of anger and hurt, "you have to listen to us Lena. What you did was…"

Trinity was about to finish when Link interrupted her.

"…amazing!"

Lena, Trinity, and Morpheus all looked at Link as he sat there with a huge smile on his face.

"Oh…" he seemed to remember himself and mirrored the serious composure of both Trinity and Morpheus, "ah yeah… irresponsible… wrong… yeah."

Trinity shot him a deathly glare while Morpheus turned back to look at Lena with the same disappointment that Trinity had just given her. Lena however, was smiling in her chair, obviously feeding off of Link's comment.

"Oh!" said Lena suddenly, catching them all off guard, "he spoke to me. He told me where Dad was."

They all seemed to perk up immediately at this news. Morpheus stood up tall and Trinity grabbed Lena's arm to look her in the eye.

"What did it say? Where is he?" Trinity asked urgently.

Lena averted her eyes, looking pensively down at the ground, as if trying to remember.

"He said something about… a train, that we'd have to take the train to find him."

Trinity looked up at Morpheus who was mirroring her curious expression.

"Did he say anything else?" Trinity asked.

"Well yes… that's when he said if I answered the phone he'd kill me," said Lena, her voice becoming small and scared again.

Trinity grabbed Lena's hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Trinity was unsure as to why the program would tell her not to leave, then let her run away.

"So, I guess that's it then," said Morpheus, interrupting her thoughts, "you'll have to get on the train."

"I don't understand," said Trinity, "is this something like when the trainman took Neo? Even if I get on the train… it's the matrix… won't it just take me to the end of the line?"

"Are you sure it didn't say anything else?" asked Morpheus this time, looking at Lena seriously.

Lena shook her head firmly.

Morpheus sighed and turned back to Trinity.

"Just do as it says and I guess we'll see what happens."

"Wait a minute," said Link, "it could be dangerous. Should we really be trusting this program?"

"If we want Neo back," replied Trinity, "then we don't have a choice."

Link turned around as Morpheus came back over to the chair Trinity was in.

"Alright," he said looking down at her, "be careful."

Trinity nodded and lay back down in the chair, as Lena got up to stand beside her.

"What if he won't let you come back?" asked Lena, looking afraid.

Trinity put a hand to Lena's cheek.

"I'll come back I promise."

Lena nodded and sat back down on the chair beside Trinity. Trinity lay back and closed her eyes, waiting once again to be reinserted. Morpheus put the rod in and Trinity opened her eyes to the subway station.

It was lighter now as the sun was rising up on the street and rays of light filtered into the station. A few people were idly standing by, though none had seemed to notice her appear suddenly. They were yawning, coffees in hand, obviously too tired to notice.

Trinity stood in her spot and waited for the train along with the few others. Within a minute the noise echoed down the tunnel and the train came along, screeching to a halt on the rusty old tracks. The doors opened and a man stepped out before Trinity walked on behind the two other people who were waiting.

Trinity walked on casually as the doors closed shortly behind her. A woman who had walked on in front of Trinity sat down and looked up at her, noticing Trinity for the first time. She looked at her rather uneasily as she eyed her from the top of her newspaper she was pretending to read, and clutching her coffee more tightly.

Trinity pretended to ignore her as she walked past the women and sat down at the far side of the train. The closest passenger to her was a man who was sitting in a seat about ten feet away from her completely asleep.

Trinity sighed as the train rattled on down the tracks and she wondered just how far it would take her. She lost track of time as the train repetitively stopped at each platform and carried on again, a few passengers walking on and off each time.

Trinity guessed that it was about twenty minutes later when a man walked on at a stop. He walked with his footsteps heavy and deliberately slow, making Trinity take notice immediately and look up to meet his face. It was him. The same man who had appeared before Neo and disappeared along with him. Of course by now Trinity knew that he was the program.

He stopped and sat down a few seats from her, looking straight ahead as if he did not recognize her at all. Trinity looked at him for a moment before looking down the train to see that it was empty, save for the man asleep.

Frantic thoughts were running through Trinity's head about whether or not she should speak when the man who had been asleep woke up abruptly when the train jumped loudly. He sat straight up, startled, and looked over at Trinity before realizing where he was and looked out the train, probably wondering how long he'd been asleep. He stood up and walked to the doors waiting until the train stopped once more before hurrying out.

As soon as the doors closed, the program rounded on her, turning his head to face her, his eyes boring into her dangerously.

"Alone at last," he spoke slowly, charmingly, in a way that reminded Trinity of the Merovingian.

Trinity gave him an icy stare and responded in a tone that mirrored her demeanor.

"Where is he?"

"Patience my dear," he replied, "we're not far now."

Trinity silently cursed to herself. She had a feeling that this was not all going to be as easy as simply picking Neo up and taking him back. She was about to ask the program what he wanted from them, when the train suddenly halted to a stop, making Trinity lose her balance and reach out to the side of the train to steady herself.

The program looked straight ahead still, as if oblivious to her trouble. He stood up then and looked back at her for only a moment to speak.

"Come with me."

Trinity took a deep breath and stood up to comply. They walked off of the train and into a large room. Trinity was completely taken aback, as she'd been expecting to walk out onto the platform. She looked around at the new surroundings nervously. The room reminded her of the sparring program they used to train new recruits. It was completely empty except for her and the program.

The program stopped in the middle of the room and slowly turned to face her, his arms behind his back in an astute pose.

"You'll be happy to know that I did not harm him… much."

Trinity could feel her pulse quickening and her heart pounding with anger.

"I never intended to kill him. If I had, I would have done so easily, I'll have you know."

Trinity suppressed the incredible urge she had to run over and beat him senseless.

"I took him as a bargaining tool."

Trinity was slightly surprised by this news. What could the program want from them, if not Neo?

"Originally, I just wanted a few simple codes. I knew that you'd give up anything to have him back."

A few simple codes were definitely not something they were thrilled about parting with. Trinity couldn't imagine what he'd found that was more valuable. Trinity waited for him to continue, but when he did not, she spoke.

"What do you want?"

The program smiled widely before replying.

"How I love to hear those words. Such power they bestow."

Trinity swallowed down her anger painfully, not wanting to lose her control in such a dire situation. The program looked at her menacingly when he replied.

"I want her."

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Oooooh, do you know who 'her' is? I do. Haha. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Reviews please!


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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For a moment, Trinity was at a loss as to who exactly he was referring to. Then it clicked. He wanted Lena, but why?

"Why?" asked Trinity, letting her urgent curiosity frame her words.

The program was silent for a moment before looking down at the ground and walking slowly towards the wall, admiring a painting of Japanese lilies.

"Her abilities hold similar attributes to that of the One, however, they are much more potent that his are. From your question I must assume that either you are ignorant to her potential or that you are aware and are trying to deceive me. If it be the latter, I must assure that I am not so easy tricked."

He said the last part with ferociousness in his voice and turned to look at Trinity callously.

For a moment, Trinity was speechless. Sure, Lena had developed the skills of the matrix quickly, but she seemed far from Neo's abilities. How did this program see in her that they hadn't yet? He must have been grossly mistaken.

"She's only been in the matrix once. She's not Neo," said Trinity, trying to convince herself as well as the program.

The program laughed lightly and stood his ground, a good distance from Trinity, though his intimidating gaze never faltered.

"What you believe is of no concern to me. I know the truth. Bring her to me and you can have your savior back."

"Do you really believe I'd give up my child?" asked Trinity, anger and disbelief in her voice.

"I believe that you want your savior back," he replied resolutely, as if the exchange could be done without hesitation.

Trinity breathed deeply, feeling completely unsure about what to do. She had to get Neo back; she'd do anything, anything except give up Lena. She cursed Lena for going into the matrix. Access codes were difficult to part with, but they were nothing compared to Lena. Trinity knew what she had to do.

"Tell me where he is," she demanded.

"Now why would I do that?" asked the program with a smirk.

"I'll get him back whether you give him up willingly or not," replied Trinity.

The program laughed again. He seemed to be deeply amused by her threat.

"You see that door back there?" he asked, motioning to the back of the room.

Trinity looked to the back where there was, indeed, a door that she hadn't noticed previously as it was camouflaged by the color of the walls.

"He is just through there," continued the program, "waiting for you. The door does not exist from inside, but as soon as you open it, he can leave."

He was telling her what to do only as a form of mockery. He obviously did not believe that she could overpower him. Trinity didn't really believe she could either. If this program had managed capture and contain Neo, what chance did she really have? Nonetheless, Trinity knew she had to try.

She quickly ran towards him, intending to strike him, when he dodged out of the way and hit her in the stomach hard, making her fly back against the wall roughly. She fell to the ground and groaned on the floor, trying to find the strength to stand up again. It only took her a moment, before she managed to stand up and tried once more to run at the program.

This time however, the program disappeared right before her eyes, making her stumble forwards and turn around blindly. She waited a moment before she felt an incredibly invisible force pick her up in the air and she was thrown into the wall once again, ever harder than the last time. She chocked and sputtered on blood, falling to the floor, her body coursing with pain. She felt cracked ribs and she had difficult breathing, feeling an incredible weight pressing down on her lungs.

She looked up as the program reappeared and walked over to where she was lying helplessly. He leaned down and whispered in her ear as she shuddered with the air trying desperately to rush in and out of her lungs.

"You are a fool."

The words flowed of out of his mouth breathlessly, making Trinity grimace with pain and rage. She willed herself not to give up but she was helpless against his inconceivable power.

They both looked over suddenly, as the door that had led them from the train into the room opened swiftly. Trinity swallowed in fear as she saw Lena walk into the room, the door closing quickly behind her. She did not appear to be scared at all, but resolute in her footing as she stood in the middle of the room staring intently at the program. The program stood up tall and looked at her with accomplishment in his eyes.

"Ah, I was hoping to see you," he said with an air of false kindness.

Lena looked at him with a blank expression as she spoke.

"I know that you want me. I could hear your voice in my head."

"I know," he replied looking at her almost affectionately, "you are special and you know that don't you?"

Lena ignored his question.

"Let them go and I'll come with you."

The program eyed her for a moment, as if trying to decide whether or not it might be a trick.

"Fine!" he said, turning back to Trinity immediately and speaking with a tone of aloofness, "you may go. Take your man with you."

Trinity sat with her mouth open, her eyes wide, trying to come to grips with what just happened.

"No… no! Lena!" she cried hoarsely, ignoring the pain searing through her lungs when she spoke.

Lena looked at her and, for the first time, portrayed an incredibly scared and guilty look.

"She has made her choice," said the program, walking over to Lena and looking down at her smugly.

He put a hand under her chin and pulled her face away from Trinity to look up at him. Lena swallowed fearfully and took a deep breathe. The program took his free hand and gripped her arm tightly, making her cry out in pain and shock.

Trinity pulled her will together enough to stand up shakily. She took a painful step forward, determined to reach them and grab Lena away. The program looked back at her with pity and smiled before him and Lena both disappeared. Trinity called out in vain before falling to the ground again, letting the tears fall, her lungs gasping painfully. She'd lost her. Lena was gone.

Trinity sniffed loudly, carelessly wiping the tears from her eyes with her hand. She stopped however, when she quickly remembered Neo. She stood up once again, crying out as the pain made her gasp, which only made the pain in her lungs intensify. She stumbled over to the door and opened it.

She looked down at Neo, who was sitting in a chair in the middle of the small room with his head in his hands. He looked up quickly when the door opened and looked up at Trinity in surprise. He immediately jumped out of the chair and ran to her, enveloping her in his arms.

Trinity cried out when he did so, as he'd squeezed her broken ribs painfully. Neo backed up quickly and looked at her with concern as she was doubled over, her arms around her stomach and chest protectively.

"God, Trin! I'm sorry! Are you okay!?" Neo asked, looking at her with worry.

"I'm fine," she replied quickly, looking back up into Neo's eyes, "Lena, he took Lena."

"No…" he said, looking away angrily.

"Yes," replied Trinity, her emotion coming through her voice, "we have to go after them."

"Where'd they go?" he asked, looking back at her.

"I don't know," Trinity replied desperately, trying her best to stand up straight and heading back out the door, clutching the wall for support, "but we have to go."

"Wait, Trinity," said Neo, catching her and trying to put his arm around her, "we need to get you fixed up first."

"No!" screamed Trinity, ripping away from him sharply, "we have to go now. We don't have time."

"Trinity, we can't do anything with you in this state, we have to go back," said Neo, speaking to her firmly, as if she were a two-year old disobeying him.

Trinity looked at him and bit her lip with reluctance. She needed to find Lena, but she knew he was right.

"Fine, but let's hurry," she said, allowing Neo to put his arm around her waist tentatively.

Neo led a limping Trinity back onto the train and quickly pulled her cell phone out of her pocket to call Link.

"Link, hey," said Neo into the phone, while Trinity was slumped in a seat beside him, grimacing with the pain that was quickly overpowering her with each moment.

"We need an exit," continued Neo, as the train lurched forward, and Trinity breathed in sharply with the jolt.

Neo put an arm around her again protectively, and she leaned her head against his shoulder, squeezing her eyes shut, willing the pain to cease.

"…alright, thanks," said Neo, before flipping down the cell phone and putting it into his own pocket, "we're almost there, next stop."

Trinity didn't respond, but instead let her mind wander to where Lena could be at that moment. What did the program want with her? Was he going to hurt her, maybe even kill her? No, he'd said something about her abilities; he must have wanted to use her for something. Trinity still couldn't help but believe Lena was at least terrified wherever she was. This thought alone filled Trinity with guilt and despair. She choked out a sob which caught Neo's attention.

"Trin, we'll get her back, don't worry," he said soothingly.

Trinity hated him in that moment. It was all Neo's fault. He should never have gone into the matrix in the first place. If he'd just stayed on the Neb, none of this would have happened. He wouldn't have been taken by the program, she wouldn't be here nursing her broken ribs and probably collapsed lung, and Lena would be safe on the Neb with Link and Morpheus.

Trinity looked up at Neo with a look of intense rage. Every part of her body wanted to jump on him, to attack him, to hurt him. She knew her anger was irrational. Neo had only been doing his duty with the best of intentions, but Trinity didn't know how else to channel the intense emotions running through her.

The train lurched to a stop roughly, and Neo stood up before reaching down to help her up. Trinity looked up at him again, spitting with anger. He looked down at her, clearly surprised by her reaction, as she ripped away from his outreached hands once again.

"Trinity!" he said angrily, reaching for her again, "Let's go!"

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Hope you're still enjoying it! Leave a review if you can please!


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

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Trinity rethought her emotion. As angry as she was, Lena needed her and pouting like a child certainly wasn't helping the situation any. Trinity decided to suck it up as she grabbed Neo's hand and stood up slowly, grimacing with the pain that consumed her thoughts once again.

"Fuck!" cried Trinity, as she felt the pain get worse with each movement.

"Hold on," said Neo, putting his arm back around her, "we're almost there."

They managed to hobble off the train just in time, as it sped away quickly. They walked across the platform towards a payphone that was already ringing in the otherwise quiet and deserted station.

Neo let Trinity cling to the side of the booth as she limped forwards and Neo put the phone to her ear. She closed her eyes and waited. Soon enough, she opened her eyes to see the Neb. Instinctively, she went to sit up, but was painfully reminded of her injuries, and bit her lip, letting a low moan escape her mouth.

Morpheus appeared above her and took her hand away from her stomach gently.

"Let me see," he said in a concerned voice.

Neo was already unplugged and sat up in the chair, looking at Morpheus inspect Trinity.

Morpheus pressed down on Trinity's stomach making her scream in pain. She felt the tears prick at her eyes and was overcome with embarrassment. Morpheus looked at her apologetically.

"Sorry. It feels like a broken rib."

"You think!?" Trinity spat out, immediately regretting it since she knew Morpheus was only trying to help.

Her breathing was labored and she struggled to speak.

Morpheus looked at her a moment before reaching down and putting a hand to her chest, letting his hand rise and fall with her chest convulsively. He pulled back and looked at her with understanding.

"A collapsed lung too."

Trinity was about to respond when she suddenly remembered something. She found all the strength she had left and hauled herself out of the chair, running haphazardly over to Link, practically falling on him. Morpheus and Neo seemed too surprised to react quickly enough to catch her. She grabbed Link's shirt and screamed at him with all the rage inside of her, making him cower in fear.

"Why did you let her go in!? What were you thinking!? How could you do that!?"

Neo and Morpheus seemed to finally come to their senses as they both rushed over to haul Trinity off of Link, who had been succumbed to her frail, but determined, slaps and punches.

"Ah! I'm sorry!" he yelled in defense as Morpheus and Neo pulled her off quickly, trying not to hurt her in the process.

Nonetheless, Trinity screamed with pain as they hauled her back into a chair and laid her down, Neo pinning her with his arms across her shoulders. Trinity sobbed helplessly while still screaming with anger and pain.

"Trinity!" yelled Neo, still pinning her down forcefully, "Trinity, look at me, calm down!"

Morpheus sat down beside Link and put his head in his hands, while Link steadied himself, still reeling from the surprise attack.

Trinity let out a final cry before crumbling completely, crying hysterically and clinging onto Neo as best she could while protecting her injuries. Neo hugged her back tightly before pulling away.

"You have to calm down," he said, looking at her intently.

Trinity sighed painfully and nodded slowly.

Morpheus stood and looked at Trinity with sadness and guilt on his face.

"I'm sorry Trinity, please understand, we had to send her in."

Neo rounded on him then.

"What are you talking about?" he said, anger in his voice now.

Trinity laid in the chair, numb to her surroundings, trying to get a grip and focus on what Morpheus was saying.

Morpheus looked back from Neo to Trinity, appearing pained at his own words.

"She convinced us to let her in. She said… she said that the program was speaking to her, telling her that the only way to save you both was to sacrifice herself."

Morpheus paused in his speech to look at Link, who nodded.

"Believe me," Morpheus continued, looking to them again, "we didn't want to send her in. We said no, but she told us that it had to be done. It was the only way."

"She's only a child!" said Neo angrily, "it wasn't the only way."

"She believed she could defeat him," said Morpheus, regaining his authoritative composure and ignoring Neo's outburst.

Neo laughed sarcastically, filling the air with a heavy tension.

He seemed about to say something but instead walked over to the chair Lena was lying in, her vitals stable and her breathing shallow.

He leaned over her chair, ignoring the others in the room.

"What have I done?" he whispered to himself.

Trinity suddenly no longer blamed Neo, nor did she blame Morpheus or Link. She realized that blaming was getting them all nowhere. What was done was done, as Morpheus had said earlier. They needed to take action. They needed to just get her back.

Trinity closed her eyes and let her head fall back onto the chair, still breathing erratically. Neo looked over at Trinity before speaking softly.

"You stay here. I'll find her Trinity, I promise."

"You can't fight him Neo, it's impossible," replied Trinity.

"No," said Neo, speaking more defiantly, "I have a stronger purpose this time. I won't stop fighting until I get her back."

Trinity normally would completely disregard such words, but the look in Neo's eyes seemed to reassure her that he would somehow manage to defeat the program. She nodded and smiled weakly at him, forgetting for a moment about the pain.

Trinity looked over at Link who quickly averted his gaze from her when she did so. He seemed to be both embarrassed and slightly ashamed.

"Link," she said softly, making him shift, but not look into her eyes, "I'm sorry."

Link sighed and looked at her with heavy emotion.

"He was killing you Trinity… we had no other choice. She had no other choice."

"I know," replied Trinity.

He sighed again before looking at Neo pensively.

"Ready?" he asked.

Neo nodded and looked at Morpheus.

"Do you know where they are?"

Morpheus looked to Link before he spoke.

"They're at the source. We think he may be trying to somehow channel her energy in order to switch the machines from our side to his side."

"How's that possible?" asked Neo.

"Your power was enough to defeat Smith. With him gone, we were able to take control of the machines, switching their code to our own. The program could potentially use her power, which may be as strong as yours, if not stronger, to reverse the switch."

Trinity was desperately trying to follow their conversation, but the pain was becoming more intense and she was beginning to slip in and out of consciousness. She groaned loudly making Morpheus, Neo, and Link look at her.

"God! Trinity, I'm sorry," said Morpheus, as he ran out of the core towards the medical room.

He came back a moment later with a syringe which he promptly injected into Trinity's arm hole. Trinity felt the light sting, but it was nothing compared to the rest of her aching body.

"This should ease the pain until I can fix you up," said Morpheus.

Neo was looking away down at the floor, clearly distracted.

"How does she have… my powers?" he asked to no one in particular.

"I don't know," replied Morpheus, taking the empty needle out of Trinity's hole and turning to look at Neo, "but we know she does. Her brain waves and kinetics are at the same level as yours."

Neo made a frustrated noise before turning to Link.

"Okay, let's go."

Link and Morpheus exchanged an apprehensive look before they both stood and walked to the front of the ship.

"Wait!" said Trinity, causing all three of them to freeze and turn to look at her, "how do you know where she is? I mean… she's plugged into the matrix, but if she's at the source, she must be in the real world. She can't possibly be in two places at once."

This seemed to catch them all off guard as no one spoke for a moment. Trinity turned her head to look at Morpheus standing behind her chair. He looked back at her and sighed in thought. It was Neo who eventually broke the silence.

"She's in the matrix. I can tell."

"How?" asked Link.

"I can just tell," replied Neo.

Link sighed while Morpheus slowly nodded.

"Alright," said Morpheus, "get ready Link."

Link headed back over to the controls and put on his headset, while Neo lay down in the chair beside Trinity.

Trinity began to feel the effects of the injection, and she took a deep breath, feeling the weight still on her lungs, but the pain start to lose intensity. Her head felt dizzy but her fear and adrenaline kept her focused.

"Are you okay?" asked Neo, looking over at Trinity as Morpheus got ready to plug him in.

"I'll be fine," Trinity replied, knowing now wasn't the time for sympathy and adoration.

He could fawn over her later. Right now he had Lena to worry about.

"I can't believe after what I had to go through to get you out, you have to go back in again," said Trinity, with an irritated look.

Neo smiled at her, making Trinity sigh in annoyance.

"Again… be careful," she said, watching Neo's eyes close and his smile fade as Morpheus inserted him.

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Aw, I didn't get any reviews for the last chapter, did you guys not like it as much? Please, give me some feedback so I know if the story is heading in a good direction or not.


	23. Chapter 23

I'm sorry I didn't update sooner like I usually do. I had to get all my exams out of the way and I just started back at work. I also didn't think anyone was that desperate for me to update since there weren't any reviews. I thought maybe I had a dead story on my hands and I was considering just leaving it where it was. However, I did get a review asking for an update so I guess you still want one!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Matrix.

* * *

Morpheus walked over to stand by Link, watching Neo arrive back at the subway station.

"Operator," said Link, catching Neo's call. "Let me look on the map."

Trinity guessed Neo had asked where the program was at the moment. She wished she could walk over and watch as well, but her injuries had confined her to the chair. She feebly attempted to get up, but as expected, couldn't find the strength to do so. She sat back, hoping Morpheus and Link could give her a play-by-play on what was happening.

"No sign of them," continued Link, pulling up the map of the station on a monitor.

"Tell him to get on the train again," said Morpheus. "I think that's our best bet."

"Morpheus says to get on the train," said Link over his headset.

Trinity took her eyes away for a moment to look over at Lena again.

"Where are you?" she whispered out loud, making Morpheus turn to look at her.

He seemed about to say something when Link suddenly shouted.

"Oh! There!" he cried, pointing to a red dot on the station map. "It's her!"

"She's moving," observed Morpheus. "She must be on the train."

"Operator," said Link, obviously getting another call from Neo. "…okay, get off at the next platform."

Link clicked off and immediately turned around to face both Trinity and Morpheus.

"He's got her," he said incredulously.

"What?" said Trinity in disbelief, "just like that?"

"I guess so," said Link.

Morpheus was silent, looking pensively at the floor.

"Here they come," said Link, putting his headset back on and working again.

Morpheus instinctively went over to Lena first, knowing Neo would get her out before himself. He waited until Link gave him the okay and gently unplugged the metal rode from Lena's head.

Trinity watched her sit up and breath deeply, rubbing her head as if she'd just been knocked unconscious.

"Lena," said Trinity, catching her attention. "You're alright?"

Lena nodded slowly, staring straight ahead. Trinity looked at her motions oddly, feeling that something wasn't quite right. She was distracted momentary however, when Neo sat up beside her. He looked from Lena to Trinity and smiled. Trinity returned his smile uneasy, looking back over at Lena who hadn't moved.

"Lena, are you sure you're alright?" Trinity asked again.

Lena nodded once more and finally turned to look at her.

"I'm feeling tired. Can I go lay down?" she asked in a blank tone.

Trinity felt her body turn cold. She knew now for sure that something wasn't right. Lena should have been scared, upset, or at least happy to be safe and back on the ship. She seemed to be fine which Trinity took as a very bad sign.

Before Trinity couldn't question her again however, Neo answered.

"Of course. Do you need anything?"

Neo didn't seem to feel as Trinity did, and spoke as if none of the past events had occurred.

Lena shook her head silently and promptly took off, walking briskly out of the core. Trinity watched her leave feeling anxious. Neo noticed and looked at her questionably.

"What? She'll be fine," he said, trying to reassuring her. "Hey, you need some help. Let me take you to the medical bay."

"But..." said Trinity, wondering how to express her thoughts.

She realized maybe Neo was right, after all he wasn't the one doped up on painkillers. Maybe Trinity was just reading too much into the situation. She took a deep breath and looked at Neo, nodding her head.

Neo picked her up gently and began to carry her out of the room. From Neo's arms, Trinity could faintly hear Morpheus and Link's conversation, receding in the background.

"Why would he just let her go?" asked Morpheus.

"I don't know," replied Link, "I suppose we should ask her what happened."

Trinity could not hear Morpheus next comment however, as Neo turned the corner down the walkway, heading towards the medical bay. Trinity was unnerved by hearing Morpheus' fears, as they seemed to strengthen her own.

She allowed Neo to put her down on a table once they reached the medical bay. She looked up at the neon lighting, trying to gather her thoughts. Neo was rummaging through the cupboards for supplies.

"Neo?" called Trinity, making him come over immediately, a tray in hand.

"What is it?" he asked, setting down the tray and beginning to put an IV in Trinity's hand.

"Lena," said Trinity.

"She's fine," said Neo automatically.

"No Neo, I don't think she is," replied Trinity warily. "You found her alone on the train?"

"Yeah. You were right, you are much better at this stuff than I am," said Neo, referring to the needle.

"Where on the train?" continued Trinity, ignoring his change of subject.

"Well I just walked on and she was standing there," answered Neo, going back to the cupboards.

Trinity frowned at Neo's response. It just didn't seem to make any sense.

"It was like she was waiting for me," continued Neo, walking back over to inject something into the needle.

Trinity shook her thoughts out of her head, focusing on what Neo was doing for the first time.

"What are giving me?" she asked worriedly.

"Just something to help you sleep while I fix you up," Neo replied casually.

"No," Trinity said desperately. "I need to talk to Lena."

It was too late however, as Neo had already injected the white liquid. Trinity could feel the coldness creeping up her arm slowly and her head began to pound.

"Just relax," she heard Neo say, though his voice was diminishing.

Trinity's eyelids became heavy and she slowly closed them, watching Neo's face disappear from above her.

"Mom?"

Trinity heard a voice above her head. She opened her eyes to see only the bright neon light above her.

"Mom?"

Trinity turned towards the voice to see Lena standing beside her. She slowly sat up, noticing the pain in her chest and ribs was completely gone. Lena was standing just a few feet from her, looking at Trinity fearfully.

"Mom, help me."

"Help you?" asked Trinity, swinging her legs over the side of the table, "what's wrong?"

"Help me," repeated Lena, stepping backwards towards the door.

"Wait, Lena what's going on?" asked Trinity, getting down off the table and walking towards Lena cautiously.

"I can't get out," said Lena slowly, her voice trembling with terror.

"What?" asked Trinity, stepping closer again.

"He won't let me out."

"Who, the program?" asked Trinity.

Lena nodded and Trinity watched as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

Trinity's heart began to beat quickly. She could feel a sense of forbidding and the walls seemed to be closing in on them. It was the same feeling she got when she was first on the subway and they were chasing Foster. Everything seemed to be getting darker. The lights flickered in the room and Lena began to cry, her body shaking.

Trinity went to grab her but Lena ran through the door, slamming it behind her. The lights in the room were completely out, and darkness surrounded her. Trinity grabbed the door and pulled it open. She looked out to see not the usual walkway of the Neb, but the subway station. Neo was standing on one end, staring at Lena, who was standing at the other. Both were obviously in the matrix as Neo sported his usual sleek black outfit and Lena's hair was long and flowing.

"What's happening?" asked Trinity, looking to either for an answer.

They didn't seem to be able to hear her however, as they were both locked in each other's gaze. Suddenly Lena ran at Neo, stopping only a foot in front of him when a loud shot rang out, making Trinity jump backwards. Neo had a gun to Lena's stomach. He had shot her. Lena made a choking sound and fell to the ground, the wound in her stomach oozing out blood. Trinity looked at Neo in horror, watching his own face crumble into hysterical sobs. Trinity screamed and ran at Neo but not before the door slammed in her face.

"No!"

Trinity bolted up off the table, opening her eyes to see Neo sitting beside her looking terrified.

"Trinity, calm down," he said, pushing her back down onto the table.

Trinity felt the sweat run down her face, her body shaking, and her heart pounding. She looked around the medical room and then at Neo standing in front of her. It had been a dream.

"Neo!" she gasped out, putting a hand to her chest.

Her lungs were no longer painful, but a jolt of pain went up her spine when she touched her ribs again.

"Trinity, relax," said Neo, still holding her down by her shoulders. "You're fine."

Trinity took a deep breath and did as he asked, trying to relax. She felt a wave of relief, knowing that Neo did not really shoot their daughter. Still, Trinity couldn't help but remember how real it had all felt.

"I had a dream," said Trinity, speaking slowly, her breathing evening out.

"How?" asked Neo in disbelief, "you were too deep asleep to be dreaming."

Trinity closed her eyes in thought. It wasn't a dream. Maybe it was real. Perhaps somehow Lena had been reaching out to her. She was in trouble.

Trinity looked at Neo in alarm.

"I saw Lena. She told me she was trapped. The program, he won't let her out."

"What?" asked Neo. "Trinity, Lena's fine. She went to lie down remember."

"No," said Trinity. "I knew something wasn't right. Neo, I think don't think you brought Lena back with you."

Neo looked at her quizzically. He didn't have time to respond however, as the ship suddenly lurched. Neo grabbed onto Trinity, both clutching each other as the ship shook around them. As soon as it began, it was over.

"What was that?" asked Neo, a hint of fear in his voice.

"Come on!" yelled Trinity, who was already up off the table and limping out of the room.

Neo followed her as they went into the core to see Morpheus and Link looking as surprised as they were.

"Where's Lena?" asked Trinity desperately, looking between the two.

Both Morpheus and Link looked at her puzzled.

Trinity looked back at Neo before running as fast as her body would take her into the cockpit. Trinity walked inside, freezing when she saw they were traveling through the sewer tunnels at an incredible rate. Trinity spotted a head of short black hair just over the captain's chair. Lena was somehow driving the ship, and extremely well at that. That's when Trinity knew her vision had not been a dream. It was not really Lena sitting in font of her.

Neo ran in behind her, stopping when he too noticed what was going on. He was about to speak when Trinity put a hand to his mouth. Morpheus and Link ran into the room and looked at Lena incredulously.

Trinity grabbed them all and whispered in a low voice.

"I don't have time to explain so just listen to me. I'm going to grab Lena and I want you Morpheus to take over the ship when I do. Neo, Link, whatever happens do not let Lena get out of this room."

Morpheus nodded but both Neo and Link looked at her as if she'd gone insane.

"What the hell is going on?" Neo whispered dramatically.

Trinity silenced him with her hand however, and looked at him intently.

"Please, just do it."

Neo nodded and Trinity turned around to face Lena, who was oblivious to their presence. Morpheus walked on the other side of her chair while Neo and Link stood cautiously by the doorway. Trinity took a deep breath and went for it, lunging at Lena and ripping her out of the chair.

Morpheus was quick to take over, steering them away from nearly hitting the sewer floor beneath them. Lena screamed angrily and elbowed Trinity in her injured rib, making her scream out in pain. Trinity crumbled to the floor while Lena ran for the doorway, but not before Link and Neo grabbed her and pinned her to the floor.

"Lena, stop!" screamed Link, but Lena only thrashed harder against them.

Neo cried out in pain as Lena's boot came into sharp contact with his shin.

Trinity tried to get up but the searing pain wasn't allowing her to move. She watched helplessly as Lena attempted to overpower Neo and Link. Trinity could tell they were losing control, Lena writhing and screaming uncontrollably beneath them.

Morpheus set down the ship and ran past them back out of the room. He reappeared a minute later, just in time. Morpheus bent down, a syringe in hand, and struggled to inject Lena's arm. She screamed louder but Morpheus' strong grip kept her down long enough for him to empty the needle.

After a moment, Lena's screams died down and she began to relax. She eventually fell unconscious, her head falling back against the steel floor. Morpheus threw down the empty needle and walked over to Trinity, helping her back to her feet.

Link sat down, leaning against the wall trying to catch his breath while nursing his side where Lena had obviously kicked him. Neo sat back as well, coughing and choking with exhaustion.

"Trinity," he gasped out, "can you please tell me what the fuck is going on?"


End file.
